Why it's not a British royal wedding without fancy hats

It’s a busy time for the British royal family as Prince Harry and Meghan Markle prepare to tie the knot. And like any guest in attendance of a wedding, you’ll need to dress for the occasion. And one thing that literally stands out at British royal weddings are the hats and fascinators adorning guests’ noggins. While hats have fallen out of style for everyday fashion, they have remained as tradition at fancy shindigs like royal weddings, horse races, and other British formal occasions.

The royal weddings that shaped European history

Over the course of her 63-year reign, Queen Victoria strategically planned marriages to place her descendants in royal families all over Europe. In doing so, she created one of the most remarkable royal families in history. By the early 19th century, Europe had been at war for decades. After the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic wars killed millions, European leaders came together to restore peace by reshaping major states for a new balance of power. Great Britain went on to become one of the strongest states. And years later, Queen Victoria and her husband Albert came up with a plan to maintain that political power — they married their children to monarchs across Europe. By the 1880s Queen Victoria’s children were in several important branches of Europe’s monarchies.