The kiss

The kiss
For many, the highlight of the day was the brief, but tender kiss between Prince William and his bride.

Britain's Prince William and his wife Kate, Duchess of Cambridge kiss on the balcony in Buckingham Palace, after the wedding service, on April 29, 2011, in London. AFP PHOTO / LEON NEAL
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Newlyweds William and Kate kiss as world watches
LONDON – Prince William and Kate Middleton married in a glittering display of pageantry Friday, kissing tenderly in front of a sea of well-wishers and breathing new life into Britain's embattled monarchy.

Two billion TV viewers worldwide watched as Kate swept up the aisle of Westminster Abbey wearing an ivory and white satin dress with long lace sleeves, a veil and flowing train.

William, dressed in a scarlet military uniform, mouthed "you look beautiful" to his bride, then the couple solemnly exchanged their vows before Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams pronounced them man and wife.

More than one million people lined the streets of London to wish the newlyweds well, police said.

The future king and queen later kissed twice on the balcony of Buckingham Palace to the delight of hundreds of thousands of wellwishers – one more kiss than William's parents Charles and Diana exchanged when they wed in 1981.

Royal Air Force planes streaked low above the palace in honour of the royal newlyweds, who will now be known officially as the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.

The display of pomp mixed with genuine affection offers the scandal-hit royals a chance at renewal after Charles and Diana's traumatic public split and her tragic death in a car crash in Paris in 1997.

The marriage completes a romance that began eight years ago when William, the second-line to the throne, and his "commoner" bride were both still students at St Andrews University in Scotland. AFP

balcony – a place where you can stand just outside an upper window. It sticks out from the wall of a building
glittering – shining with a lot of small bright flashes of light
display – a performance or show
pageantry – the traditional features of formal ceremonies, for example special clothes, music and decorations
tenderly – in a kind, gentle and loving way
sea – a large amount of something that stretches over a wide area, in this case, people

embattled – experiencing a lot of problems
monarchy – the king or queen and their family in a particular country
aisle – a long narrow space between rows of seats in a church, aircraft, or cinema
abbey – a large church together with a group of buildings in which monks or nuns live or lived in the past
ivory – the yellowish-white colour of the bone that an elephant’s tusks are made of
satin – a type of cloth with a smooth shiny surface
lace – a delicate material made from threads of cotton, silk, etc. that are twisted into a pattern of holes
sleeve – a part of a piece of clothing that covers all or part of your arm
veil – a covering of very thin transparent material worn, especially by women, to protect or hide the face, or as part of a hat, etc
train – the part of a long formal dress that spreads out on the floor behind the person wearing it
scarlet – bright red in colour
bride – the woman at a wedding who is getting married
couple – two people who are married or are involved in a romantic relationship
solemnly – seriously
vow – a serious promise
archbishop – a bishop of the highest rank, responsible for all the churches in a large area
line – to form lines or rows along something
delight – a feeling of great happiness and pleasure
streak – to move very fast in a particular direction
duke (female: duchess) – a nobleman of the highest rank
pomp – the impressive clothes, decorations, music, etc. and traditional customs that are part of an official occasion or ceremony
genuine – real; honest
affection – a feeling of liking and caring about someone or something
scandal – a situation in which important people behave in a dishonest or immoral way that shocks people
renewal – a situation in which something is replaced, improved or made more successful
traumatic – making you feel very upset, afraid, or shocked
split – to separate
second-in-line to the throne – a person who has the right to become the king or queen of a country after someone one else, in this case, after Prince Charles
commoner – an ordinary person who is not a member of a royal family
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