While Kate, the Princess of Wales’s wedding dress made headlines globally, Kate also wore a second wedding dress at a private reception hosted by the late Queen later that evening

Only 300 people were lucky enough to see Princess Kate’s second wedding dress at a private reception after the royal couple tied the knot.

Images of the Princess of Wales being walked down the aisle by her father were beamed to every corner of the globe on the couple’s big day 13 years ago. And many were in awe of the stunning hand-crafted dress designed specially by Sarah Burton of the Alexander McQueen fashion house. With no expense spared, the elegant French Chantilly and English Cluny lace cost a reported jaw-dropping £250,000.

However, the second gown was only seen by the select few. One royal expert said this dress was chosen by the Princess because she “truly wanted to express herself” with the British fashion giant being called on again to make it happen. At the time, the Palace said it decided to use Alexander McQueen “for the beauty of its craftsmanship and its respect for traditional workmanship and the technical construction of clothing.”

Just two years after the wedding, a video of the Duchess descending a staircase during the reception at Clarence House went viral on TikTok, showing the gorgeous A-line gown with its sweetheart neckline and sparkly waist embellishment.

She also donned a white fluffy cardigan which showed off her delicate waistline. More than 38,000 people liked the video shared by royal watching account, @allacortedi. Commenters praised the princess’s sartorial prowess, with one saying: “So beautiful. Our Queen.” Another added: “She looked SPECTACULAR in this!! 100X better than the first one! It complimented her amazingly athletic body.”

Miranda Holder explained how some royals like to change into a second wedding dress after the religious ceremony. This allows royal brides to leave behind “formalities” while offering an opportunity to “fully express” themselves.

Speaking to The Express she said: “Having a second option allows these blushing brides a moment to fully express who they really are, how they want to look – and more importantly feel – once the initial formalities of the ceremony and official photographs are over.” And while she said the Princess of Wales ‘continued the formalities’ with her second look,” she said she had “scaled down in terms of grandeur and lost her enormous train.”

She described the evening dress as “Simple and sweet,” and the cardigan as: “Very pretty,” but added: “It feels like she didn’t have the opportunity to relax on this occasion.” However, she did note that a royal wedding dress can often be part of a bigger agenda. Often on these occasions, the first bridal gown is a formality, a family heirloom, a political statement, or part of the larger PR machine that surrounds them,” she said.