Skip to main contentSkip to footer

15 most beautiful royal wedding cakes that will dazzle you

Royal bakers reveal secrets behind the stunning cakes

wedding cakes
Andrea Caamano
Website Editor
Share this:

WATCH: Baker Claire Ptak gives inside look at the making of Harry and Meghan's royal wedding cake

There may be no royal wedding buzz right now, but that doesn't stop us from looking back at all the amazing cakes – and particularly handy if you're looking for some inspiration for your own big day.

Royal fans have marvelled at numerous stunning bakes over the years, from the Queen and Prince Philip's incredible 9ft wedding cake to the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge's traditional tiered creation.

The talented bakers hand-selected by the brides and grooms have often shared the recipes so budding bakers can recreate the cakes at home. They have also been known to reveal behind-the-scenes preparations in the run-up to each royal wedding as the creators make the final finishing touches.

For all the keen foodies, we thought we'd take a look back at some of the most showstopping royal wedding cakes through the years…

SEE: 10 showstopping royal birthday cakes revealed

lady gabriella© Photo: Instagram

Lady Gabriella Windsor and Thomas Kingston

Lady Gabriella and Thomas Kingston's wedding cake by baker Fiona Cairns, was a beautiful eight-tiered creation with pale blush icing and leaf border surrounding the base, inspired by fabric within Frogmore House. The cake featured three different sponges: luxury rich fruit cake, classic Victoria sponge and lemon Limoncello sponge cake.

eugenie wedding cake© Photo: Getty Images

Princess Eugenie and Jack Brooksbank

The couple asked wedding cake designer Sophie Cabot to make the centrepiece for their big day in October 2018. The stunning red velvet and chocolate cake consisted of five-tiers and was decorated with autumnal flowers and leaves.  

MORE: 21 of the most iconic (and expensive) royal wedding dresses in history

Keep clicking for more photos...

meghan markle wedding cake© Photo: Getty Images

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's lemon and elderflower cake was made by Claire Ptak, owner of London-based Violet Bakery. It was covered with buttercream and decorated with fresh flowers to incorporate the bright flavours of spring for their May 2018 wedding.  

MORE: 22 of the most stunning royal wedding bouquets

kate middleton wedding cake© Photo: Getty Images

Prince William and Kate Middleton

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge had two cakes made for their 2011 nuptials. The first was a magnificent eight-tiered iced traditional fruit cake featuring the "language of flowers" made by Leicestershire baker Fiona Cairns. The confectionery masterpiece - which took five weeks to make - was covered in cream and intricate white icing and decorated with up to 900 delicate sugar-paste flowers. William and Kate saved the top two tiers of the cake for their future children's christenings.

Their second cake was a childhood favourite of William's - an unbaked chocolate biscuit cake. It was made by McVities to a recipe the firm received from Buckingham Palace kitchen chefs. As well as a couple of secret ingredients, it featured dark chocolate and broken-up Rich Tea biscuits.

MORE: Inside the most stunning royal homes: from Prince William and Kate Middleton to Prince Harry and Meghan Markle

the queen wedding cake© Photo: Getty Images

Princess Elizabeth and Lieutenant Philip Mountbatten

The Queen's wedding cake was a grand affair, standing at nine-foot high, weighing 500 pounds and featuring four tiers. Made by McVitie and Price from ingredients received from the Australian Girl Guides, the cake was cut using Philip's sword. One layer was kept until the christening of Prince Charles and another was sent back to Australia by way of thanks.

MORE: 19 eye-opening royal wedding facts: Meghan Markle & Prince Harry, Kate Middleton & Prince William, more

princess anne wedding cake© Photo: Getty Images

Princess Anne and Captain Mark Phillips

The 1973 cake chosen by the royal couple was helped skyward with silver tiers, supporting the weight of the cake and all that icing.

Here Sergeant Major David Dodd of the Army Catering Corps can be seen putting the finishing touches to the wedding cake.

grace kelly wedding cake© Photo: Getty Images

Prince Rainier III of Monaco and Grace Kelly

Grace Kelly's princess-perfect wedding cake was given to the couple by the pastry chefs at Monte-Carlo's famed Hôtel de Paris. The treat's upper two tiers featured a built-in cage that held a pair of live turtledoves – they were released when the couple cut into the cake with Prince Rainier's sword.

princess charlene monaco wedding cake© Photo: Getty Images

Prince Albert of Monaco and Charlene Wittstock

Albert and Charlene pulled out all of the stops to ensure their cake made an impression on their VIP guests. It was made up of seven tiers and, always keen to pay homage to her roots, Charlene ensured the cake was decorated with Proteas, South Africa's national flower.

READ: 14 show-stopping celebrity wedding cakes that will go down in history

princess diana wedding cake© Photo: Getty Images

Prince Charles and Diana Spencer

When the Prince of Wales married Lady Diana Spencer in 1981, their official royal wedding cake was 5ft high and weighed 255lbs. It was made by the Royal Navy's Cookery school, HMS Pembroke, at Chatham.

princess margaret wedding cake© Photo: Rex

Princess Margaret and Lord Snowdon

Five feet tall, 150 pounds, and designed with hexagonally panelled tiers, the cake of Princess Margaret and Lord Snowdon came in three massive layers, in lieu of many small ones. The sides of each tier bore the Princess's coat of arms and the couple's new monogram.

princess mette marit wedding cake© Photo: Rex

Prince Haakon of Norway and Mette-Marit

The couple's seven-layer wedding cake featured dragons on the side and was made of white chocolate. The design of the cake was inspired by one of the Viking ships located in a museum in Oslo. The impressive creation was a gift from Norwegian cake makers and was a traditional English wedding cake with a spiced bottom filled with raisins, fruits and berries.

princess sofia wedding cake© Photo: Rex

Prince Carl Philip of Sweden and Sofia Hellqvist

The couple's cake was very modern, featuring multiple tiers held on different stands and with lights shining from the centre of each of them. The colourful wedding cake contained pop rocks (fizzing candy) as a surprise for the guests.

princess victoria wedding cake© Photo: Getty Images

Princess Victoria of Sweden and Daniel Westling

Victoria and Daniel's cake takes the prize for the most showstopping royal cake. When the couple married in June 2010, the country's Association of Bakers & Confectioners gifted the couple with a stunning wedding cake. Weighing 250 kg, it was made up of 11 tiers, each in the shape of a lucky four-leaf clover.

queen rania wedding cake© Photo: Rex

Prince Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands and Maxima Zorreguieta

The couple's gorgeous four-tiered white wedding cake featured their monogram in red.

queen victoria wedding cake© Photo: Getty Images

Queen Victoria and Prince Albert

Queen Victoria and Prince Albert's white iced two-tier wedding cake in 1840 was 9ft in diameter and weighed 300 lbs. It was decorated with a figure of Britannia in the act of blessing figures of the bride and groom dressed in ancient Greek costume.

Victoria's cake is seen as the most influential of royal wedding cakes, as prior to Victoria, wedding cakes were not an important feature at wedding receptions.

More Food

See more