BOSTON – On Saturday, 6 August, King Adam married Laurel, Countess McAleer and now Queen of Überstadt, at Saint Mark’s Episcopal Cathedral, Seattle, USA, in the presence of their families and close friends. After a three-day honeymoon in the San Juan Islands, Their Majesties moved to their new home in Boston, USA.
Elegant beauty and themes of loving service at church ceremony
The wedding service began at 10:30 in the morning as the bride and groom processed into the cathedral’s neo-Gothic Thomsen Chapel attended by their siblings as the congregation sang “Ye Watchers and Ye Holy Ones.” The King wore a dark gray suit with a green floral print vest made by the Duchess of Bellevue and a pale green necktie. Lady McAleer wore a vintage calf-length ivory-colored lace dress her mother bought in anticipation of her birth, as well as a vintage veil and her mother’s wedding pearls. The wedding party’s bouquets and boutonnieres included assorted purple and white flowers with extensive greenery.
Departing from the traditional giving of the bride, the couple’s parents stood and presented them to be married and promised to support them in their new life together. After the presentation, the people joined in singing Gloria in excelsis Deo.
Much of the ceremony emphasized the importance of service to others. Friends of the couple read Bible passages about companionship and godly love from Ecclesiastes and 1 Corinthians, the latter read in both Greek and a new English translation by the Sôgmô of Sandus. The Rev. Canon Jennifer King Daugherty, who officiated the marriage, read the Gospel of John’s account of Jesus washing his disciples’ feet and commanding them to love one another. Next, she gave a homily on the ways marriage equips a couple to serve those around them, recalling the intention the bride and groom expressed in counseling with her to use their marriage as the basis of their shared rule of life.
The bride and groom made the vows from the Book of Common Prayer and exchanged modern rings. The King received a sterling silver ring carved in a wave pattern. The Queen received a gold ring set with a hexagonal salt-and-pepper diamond, a piece by Seattle-based designer Valerie Madison. Canon King Daugherty pronounced the couple married and, following prayers for the marriage, pronounced the church’s blessing on the union. The congregation then exchanged the sign of peace as the newlyweds embraced and kissed for the first time as spouses.
Ministers prepared the altar as the people sang “Thou Who at Thy First Eucharist Didst Pray.” Canon King Daugherty celebrated the Eucharist. The King and Queen received communion first, followed by the other attendees. After the postcommunion prayer, all joined in singing “Be Thou My Vision.” Their Majesties led the procession out of the chapel as the organist played a setting of “O for a Thousand Tongues.”
Dozens entertained at thrifty brunch reception
Following the ceremony, attendees and additional invited guests assembled in the cathedral’s social hall for a reception. The room was decorated with vases of lavender and wild greenery and attractive books from Their Majesties’ personal collections. The King and Queen entered and performed their first dance before brunch was served.
The meal was a buffet breakfast taco bar prepared by the couple’s families and friends, featuring a much-celebrated pork barbacoa cooked by the Queen’s mother. The wedding cake, made by the Duchess of Bellevue, was flavored with Earl Grey tea and layered with blueberry compote and lemon frosting dyed lavender to match the wedding’s theme colors. Dessert also included ricotta tarts topped with berries, including some grown in Rosewood.
The reception concluded with toasts from the couple’s parents and siblings, and then their toasts to one another. About 40 people attended. Later in the evening, a smaller group of family and friends enjoyed a private party at a house elsewhere in Seattle.
Brief honeymoon and prompt move to Boston
The day after the wedding, the King and Queen boarded a ferry to Orcas Island in the picturesque San Juan Islands of northwestern Washington state. They camped for one night in Moran State Park, where they enjoyed hiking and canoeing, and stayed their second night at the historic Orcas Hotel. Their Majesties enjoyed exploring the island’s wooded rural roads, visiting small farms, shopping for art and handicrafts, and eating fresh seafood. On the morning of the third and final day of the trip, they received the sad news that the King’s paternal grandmother had died overnight. They attended her funeral on Tuesday, August 16.
On the evening of Wednesday, August 17, the couple boarded a flight from Seattle to Boston with their cat, Luna, and landed the next morning. Later in the day, the Queen’s mother and a family friend arrived and stayed for three days helping the couple acquire furniture and unpack their belongings. Their Majesties have since organized their apartment, which is expected to soon be annexed to the Kingdom.
The Occidental Chronicle 