Why the Queen had to give permission for Prince Harry and Meghan Markle to wed

We have one person to thank for this Saturday’s royal nuptials. No not Prince Harry for asking Meghan Markle to marry him in the first place, but Harry’s grandmother, the Queen.

When a mere mortal decides he’d like to get wed, he’ll usually get the go-ahead from his girlfriend’s father before popping the question.

But when it comes to the royals, English law dictates that a groom-to-be will need to seek permission from the actual Queen before the wedding is allowed to go ahead, which means Prince Harry had to get the green light from his granny before any questions could be popped.

So if Meghan hadn’t impressed Her Maj, then zero bells would have been ringing this Saturday.

Due to the Royal Marriages Act 1772, the reigning monarch has the right to veto the marriage of a member of his or her family and is required to give formal consent to any family marriages in order to guard against those who could “diminish the status of the royal house.”

The Act was passed in response to King George III’s disapproval of his brothers’ marital choices. In 1771, Prince Henry had married Anne Horton, a commoner and a widow.

That same year, the King also learned that another brother, Prince William, had secretly married a woman born out of wedlock.

The Act has since been relaxed somewhat and its ruling is now limited to the first six in line to the throne.

With the birth of Prince Louis, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge‘s third child, Prince Harry is now sixth in line to the throne behind Prince Charles, his brother William, Prince George and Princess Charlotte.

As yet, the Queen has never formally denied a request.

The fact that Meghan is a divorcée (she was married to Trevor Engelson from 2011 to 2013) had caused some to speculate that she might not have been given permission to wed into the royal family.

And since discovering that the couple were dating, Meghan’s family has hit the headlines with it’s fair share of scandals.

But it actually wouldn’t have (and obviously didn’t) make any difference. Not only have royal marriage rules become more relaxed of late, but the Queen has also faced a similar situation in the past.

Back in 2005 the Queen granted permission for her eldest son Charles to marry Camilla Parker-Bowles. The wedding was to be a second marriage for both Charles and Camilla, so her majesty is obviously quite happy to move with the marriage times.

However, back in 1953, she faced a tough decision when she could not allow her sister, Princess Margaret, to marry her lover Peter Townsend, who, like Meghan, was divorced.

As the head of the Church of England, the Queen had to respect and follow its teachings. At that time divorce was forbidden within the church, so people speculated that was the reason her majesty did not allow Princess Margaret to marry.

An important rule change which modernised church laws on divorce has since been introduced, which means divorce is no longer a barrier to marriage.

This weekend, Kensington Palace shared the proof that the Queen has officially given her stamp of approval for the forthcoming nuptials.

Harry’s grandmother has now signed the Instrument of Consent, meaning that the marriage can officially go ahead (can you imagine if she hadn’t signed?)

Sharing photos of the signed consent on Instagram, Kensington Palace revealed that the document’s design has been carefully created so as to celebrate both Markle’s and Prince Harry’s lives, as they join together as husband and wife.

The Instagram post reads: “The Queen has signed the Instrument of Consent, the hand-written document which records Her Majesty’s consent to the Marriage of Prince Harry and Ms. Meghan Markle.”

So on Saturday, whether you’re heading to Windsor to catch a glimpse of the happy couple or watching live with us on Yahoo make sure you raise a glass to the Queen because without her blessing none of the upcoming celebrations would have been possible.

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Read more from Yahoo Style UK:

Seasonal produce, canapés and chocolate truffles: First look at Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s wedding food

Here’s why Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are delaying their honeymoon after the wedding

Meghan Markle’s dad WILL walk her down the aisle (plus the wedding’s nod to Diana revealed)