Queen Elizabeth Cousin Lord Ivar Makes History Today With The First Gay Royal Wedding

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Look at the smile!!
Queen Elizabeth II's cousin Lord Ivar Mountbatten made history over the weekend as the first royal to have a same-sex wedding when he wed his now-husband, James Coyle. The couple quietly tied the knot in Devon in front of family and friends, Cosmopolitan U.K. reports. 
It's unclear if familiar royals like Kate Middleton, Prince William, Prince Charles, or the sovereign herself were present. (The Cambridges were seen at a friend's weddingon Saturday.) 
Although Lord Ivar's wedding to James took place out of the public eye (unlike Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's highly publicized nuptials in May), he did share details and photos from the intimate ceremony on Instagram this morning. 
"Well we did it finally!" he wrote in the caption. "It was an amazing day despite the miserable British weather." The images show the grooms wearing velvet jackets for the occasion, with James in deep blue and Lord Ivar in emerald green.
The couple was married by Trish Harrogate, chief Registrar for Devon, "who set the perfect but lighthearted tone for what is a serious occasion," Lord Ivar added. Music was provided by the Bristol’s Teachers Rock Choir. 
Lord Ivar previously married Penelope "Penny" Vere Thompson in 1994, but they divorced on amicable terms in 2011. Five years later, he publicly came out as gay. They have three daughters together, ranging from ages 15 to 22, USA Today reports. The whole family was present at the wedding—and Penny was the one who walked Ivar down the aisle. 
"Most importantly a massive thanks to my 3 gorgeous girls for being so understanding and supportive, without their support this could never have happened!" Ivar added in his Instagram post. "And finally the biggest thank you to James for being just perfect......"
Lord Ivar previously said he could do without an official ceremony, but he decided to have one for James, who hasn't been married before. "For me, what's interesting is I don't need to get married because I've been there, done that and have my wonderful children; but I'm pushing it because I think it's important for him," he told Daily Mail. "James hasn't had the stable life I have. I want to be able to give you that."
We don't know many details on the wedding celebration, but the couple previously teased that it would be very low-key. They didn't even have an official proposal, James told the Mail in June. The ceremony would only be for family and friends, and the afterparty would have about 120 guests, said.
"We went to a wedding a couple of weeks ago and said: 'We're not doing that. We're not cutting cakes. We're not having a first dance," James added at the time.
Congratulations to the happy couple!

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