Floral good luck charm expected in Eugenie’s wedding flowers

Princess Eugenie is expected to follow tradition by including a floral good luck charm in her wedding bouquet.

Custom dictates that royal brides carry flowers containing a sprig of myrtle.

And not just any myrtle – the myrtle for royal bouquets comes from a bush grown from a posy originally given to Eugenie’s great-great-great-great-grandmother Queen Victoria.

It was presented to Victoria in a nosegay by Prince Albert’s grandmother, and the couple brought it back from Germany and planted it at Osborne House, their holiday home on the Isle of Wight, where it has thrived.

The glossy, evergreen shrub is said to bring luck, prosperity and fidelity in marriage.

The wedding custom dates back to when Queen Victoria’s daughter, Princess Victoria, carried it among her bridal flowers in 1858.

The Duchess of Cambridge, the Queen, Diana, Princess of Wales, and Eugenie’s mother the Duchess of York all had myrtle in their wedding bouquets, as did, more recently, the Duchess of Sussex.

Meghan’s bouquet also contained myrtle from a plant grown from the myrtle used in the Queen’s wedding bouquet in 1947, as well as forget-me-nots personally picked by Harry in honour of his late mother Diana.

When Eugenie’s mother, then Sarah Ferguson, married the Duke of York in July 1986, she wore an elaborate floral headdress containing her husband’s favourite flowers, fragrant gardenias.

After she signed the register, the headdress was removed to reveal a sparkling diamond tiara, signifying her new royal status.

Her bouquet was designed by society florist Jane Packer and was a small spray, with lilies and lily of the valley, arranged in an unusual “S” shape.

Westminster Abbey was decorated with more than 30,000 flowers for the Yorks’ wedding.

In another tradition, royal brides poignantly send their bouquet back to Westminster Abbey to be placed on the Grave of the Unknown Warrior.

Meghan followed the custom, as did Kate in 2011, the Queen, who was Princess Elizabeth when she wed, Diana in 1981, and the Duchess of York after her wedding.

The resting place at the London Abbey holds the remains of a First World War soldier who has come to symbolise the nation’s war dead.

The late Queen Mother began the long-standing tradition when her posy was left at the grave in 1923 after her wedding to the Duke of York, later George VI.

The flowers were placed in memory of her brother Fergus, who was killed in 1915 during the global conflict.

Convention dictates that the day following a royal wedding, the floral tribute is sent to the Abbey after the official wedding pictures of the bride and groom have been taken.

Kate’s bridal bouquet, which included sweet William, as well as myrtle, lily of the valley and hyacinth, was placed on a small pillow on the grave.

Diana’s oversized spray of flowers consisted of white and gold stephanotis, gardenias, orchids, lily of the valley and yellow Earl Mountbatten roses.

The Queen chose white orchids for her bouquet.

The Unknown Warrior’s body was brought from France and buried on Armistice Day, November 11 1920.

It is thought the idea came from the Rev David Railton, who had served as a chaplain on the Western Front.

It is now one of the most visited war graves in the world.