After tying the knot in a royal wedding watched by millions, Meghan Markle and Prince Harry’s first wedding anniversary was much more laidback.
The new book Finding Freedom details how the Duke and Duchess of SusS.e.x celebrated one year of marriage — and it included none of the fanfare that surrounded their May 2018 nuptials. In fact, it was a low-key affair, marked by a simple Sunday lunch at home.
Just weeks before their anniversary, Meghan Markle and Prince Harry welcomed their son Archie. And they celebrated both milestones with Meghan’s mother, Doria Ragland, who came to the U.K. to meet her grandchild.
“On the anniversary of their first year of marriage, Harry and Meghan enjoyed a traditional Sunday lunch with Doria, her last meal before traveling back to L.A.,” wrote authors Omid Scobie and Carolyn Durand. “Her five weeks at Frogmore had flown by, but she had to get back to work.”
Prince Harry, 35, gifted Meghan, 39, an eternity ring to mark the special occasion. She first wore it at Trooping the Colour the following month.
“Harry also surprised his wife of one year with a ring that he had created with the jeweler to the stars Lorraine Schwartz, a favorite of Meghan’s,” the authors said.
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry
To mark their one-year wedding anniversary, the couple released a charming set of behind-the-scenes pictures from their happy day.
The slideshow on the couple’s now-defunct Instagram page began with a gorgeous black-and-white photo of Meghan and Harry from inside St. George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle, and also shows the blushing bride holding the hand of her mother Doria Ragland and signing the wedding register alongside the Archbishop of Canterbury, who married them.
Another sweet photo of Harry shows the groom-to-be looking up at the camera as he and brother and best man Prince William leave for the ceremony, and there’s a lovely one of Meghan being greeted by her father-in-law Prince Charles as he escorted her on the last part of her journey to the altar.
Among the 14 images, they unveil a relaxed portrait of the couple – likely relieved that the very public element of the day was over — surrounded by their little bridesmaids and page boys. And there is a solitary one of Harry appearing to be checking his speech.
Ending with a triumphant colorful shot of the crowds who thronged Windsor on that sunny spring day, they use the release of pictures to thank well-wishers for “all the love and support from so many of you around the world. Each of you made this day even more meaningful.”
Meghan and Prince Harry spent their second anniversary as a family of three in Los Angeles.
“Today the family is spending a quiet day together,” a source close to the family told PEOPLE.
After spending months in L.A. following their decision to step down as senior working royals, they moved about 95 miles north to Santa Barbara last month.
“This is their permanent home,” an insider recently told PEOPLE of the latest move. “Ever since Archie arrived, everything has been so turbulent, and many things have been up in the air. It has not been easy, necessarily. For the first time in a long time, they have a clear focus.”
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