Meghan Makes Her Royal Ascot Debut
The Duchess of Sussex attended the opening day of the race meet
The Duchess of Sussex had her first taste of a great British tradition – a day at the races – as she made her debut at Royal Ascot.
Meghan joined husband Harry in the carriage as they made their way to the Royal Enclosure. For the occasion, Meghan wore a white Givenchy dress designed by Clare Waight Keller, which was of course also the label behind her wedding dress. The duchess also chose to wear the brand last week when she went to Cheshire for a royal engagement with the Queen.
Meghan accessorised her Royal Ascot ensemble with a black-and-white Phillip Treacy hat and a pair of diamond earrings by Birks. Although the dress is most likely custom made.
This year the Ascot dress code made headlines when organisers banned Bardot off-the-shoulder necklines – a style that the duchess has shown a penchant for. When the official fashion guidelines were released back in March, they confirmed that bare shoulders were not permitted in several of the enclosures, along with spaghetti straps, halternecks and strapless styles, which were already banned from the Royal Enclosure.
“Strapless necklines have never been permitted in the Royal Enclosure and haven’t been allowed in the Queen Anne Enclosure for more than three years,” a spokesperson for the racecourse told Harper’s Bazaar. “What we have added this year is more clarification around what we consider to be strapless and therefore not compliant with the official dress code, i.e. Bardot, one shoulder and off-the-shoulder dresses.”
The Queen is a regular at the annual race meet. Known for her love of horses, Her Majesty often has many of her own horses competing on the racecourse. It’s tradition for the Queen – or a member of the royal family on her behalf – to be present during every day of the Ascot races, which run until Saturday 23 June.