Happy Birthday, Gloria Vanderbilt! A Look Back at 120 Years of Stunning Vanderbilt Weddings Inline
Photo: Vogue Archive, November 18951/8The couple: Consuelo Vanderbilt and Charles Spencer-Churchill, 9th Duke of Marlborough
When: 1895
Where: New York—the ceremony at St. Thomas Church, and the reception at Mrs. Vanderbilt’s home at 72nd Street and Madison
Her dress: Lace-trimmed cream satin with a five-yard train; veil of net, held with a coronet of orange blossoms
Her flowers: A bunch of orchids about three feet across, sent from Blenheim, the groom’s estate
The headlines: “She Is Now a Duchess,” “Thousands of Women Besiege the Young Woman’s Home and St. Thomas’s Church”
Photo: Getty Images2/8The couple: Gladys Vanderbilt and Count László Széchenyi
When: January 27, 1908
Where: The Vanderbilt home at One West 57th Street
Her dress: A white satin princess dress with lace yoke and sleeves, over which was worn an embellished court train
Her flowers: White orchids and gardenias
The headlines: “Miss Vanderbilt Now a Countess,” “One Hundred Policemen Were Required to Keep the Mob Back,” “Bridal Pair Elude Camera Squad and Make Their Escape in a Speeding Motor Car”
Photo: Courtesy of Biltmore Estate3/8The couple: Cornelia Vanderbilt and the Honorable John Francis Cecil
When: April 29, 1924
Where: Biltmore, the estate built by her father, which became hers at age 25
Her dress: Lace-covered white satin, with lace and tulle train; tulle veil hung from a coronet of orange blossoms
Her flowers: White orchids and lilies of the valley
Photo: Corbis4/8The couple: Muriel Vanderbilt and Frederic Cameron Church, Jr.
When: July 25, 1925
Where: In Newport, Rhode Island, at Beachmound, the estate of Benjamin Thaw
Her dress: Designed in Paris of silver satin and rose lace; her veil incorporated lace from her mother’s wedding
Her flowers: White orchids and gardenias tied with silver ribbons
The headlines: “Villa Scene a Fairyland”
The bridal couple and their wedding party, from left: James Otis; Robert W. Emmons; Richard S. Humphrey; Robert G. Payne, the best man; the bride and groom; Lawrence B. Van Ingen; Robert A. Lancaster; Russell S. Codman, Jr.; Harold S. Vanderbilt, uncle of the bride; and Hermann Oelrichs, a cousin of the bride
Photo: Getty Images5/8The couple: Consuelo Vanderbilt and Earl T. Smith
When: January 7, 1926
Where: The Vanderbilt family home on Fifth Avenue
The dress: Silver lace over silver tissue with a court train; veil of tulle with silver and pint lace, once worn by the bride’s mother
Her flowers: Lilies of the valley and white orchid tied with silver ribbons
The headlines: “25 Policemen Have a Hard Time Holding Back Crowd—Gifts of House, Jewels and Automobile”
The couple and their wedding party, from left: Hermann Oelrichs, a cousin of the bride; Harold Vanderbilt, an uncle of the bride; Theodore Lenihan; James Becker; Mrs. Frederic Cameron Church, Jr., the former Miss Muriel Vanderbilt, who acted as matron of honor for her sister; the groom; the bride; Sydney A. Smith, the best man and brother of the groom; H. Thompson Bushnell; John Hay Whitney; William Curran; and Walter Rich, Jr.
