Wedding dress

The V&A holds a stunning collection of wedding attire, spanning five centuries and featuring key designers. Extravagant, demure, edgy, elegant, pure white, bold colour – these ensembles are as varied as the brides and grooms who wore them.

Highlights include a 17th century royal wedding suit, vibrant outfits from Africa and Asia, plus an array of accessories, including lace veils and silk slippers. The undeniable stars, however, are the wedding dresses themselves. The extensive collection of iconic white gowns perfectly encapsulates the changing moods of both fashion and society, from the late 18th century to the present day.

Search “Wedding dress” in Explore the Collections

Features

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Dresses of character

Every dress has its own story, making bold personal statements about their wearers' lives

  1. Read

    The Victoria connection

    Queen Victoria is credited with popularising the white wedding dress, which came to symbolise romantic propriety and purity
  2. Watch

    Adaptive fashion: 1960s wedding dress and shoes

    A stunning example of 1960s adaptive bridal fashion
  3. Read

    Shopping for the dress

    A fascinating insight into the changing approach to acquiring that most special of outfits
  4. Read

    Wedding colour

    The colourful wedding dresses in our collection make bold statements about the lives and attitudes of the different women who wore them
  5. Read

    Old, new, borrowed, blue

    Discover the significance of this superstitious little rhyme
  6. Read

    Floral accessories

    Bringing with them associations of freshness, vivacity and endless cultural coding, flowers have featured in bridal designs and rituals throughout history
  7. Watch

    Designing for the bride

    Gareth Pugh, Pam Hogg and Philip Treacy discuss bespoke bridal commissions
  8. Read

    Caring for vintage wedding dresses & veils

    Our conservation experts provide some top tips on caring for and treating your vintage wedding dress
  9. Read

    Brooches for bridesmaids

    A 19th century guide to gifts for bridesmaids
  10. Read

    Gifts for groomsmen

    Canes, stock pins or cufflinks – a groomsmen gift guide
  11. Watch

    How was it made? Diamond ring

    See a diamond ring take shape
  12. Read

    Groom wear

    We hold a number of culturally valuable pieces of groom wear, including the wedding suit of King James II

Collection highlights

Show all
  1. wedding dress
    Wedding Dress, designed by Pam Hogg, 2012, UK
    V&A East Storehouse
    View by appointment
  2. man's wedding suit
    Man's wedding suit, designed by Mr. Fish, 1967, London, England
    V&A East Storehouse
    View by appointment
  3. Photograph, Lafayette Photography, 1910, United Kingdom. Museum no. LAF.6728. © Victoria and Albert Museum, London
  4. wedding dress and headdress
    Wedding dress and headdress, designed by Wendy Ramshaw, early 1962, UK
    V&A East Storehouse
    View by appointment
  5. wedding dress and petticoat
    Wedding dress and petticoat, about 1851, Britain
    V&A East Storehouse
    View by appointment
  6. wedding dress
    (Detail) Wedding dress, 1841, England
    V&A East Storehouse
    View by appointment
  7. kimono
    (Back) Kimono, 1980 – 2000, Japan
    V&A South Kensington
    Not on display
  8. ring
    Ring, 1650 – 1799, Europe
    V&A South Kensington
    View by appointment
  9. Bridal wedding outfit
    Female Wedding outfit, designed by Sabyasachi Mukherjee, 2015, Bolpur, India
    V&A East Storehouse
    Not on display
  10. photograph
    Photograph, 1916, England
    V&A East Storehouse
    View by appointment
  11. wedding dress
    Wedding dress, early 1938, UK
    V&A East Storehouse
    View by appointment
  12. wedding ensemble
    Wedding ensemble, designed by John Bates, made for Jean Varon, 1966, UK
    V&A South Kensington
    Not on display
  13. fashion design
    Fashion design, designed by Val St. Cyr, made for Elizabeth Handley-Seymour, 1916 – 18, London, England
    V&A South Kensington
    View by appointment
  14. pair of shoes
    Pair of shoes, made for Peter Robinson Ltd., 1914, London, England
    V&A East Storehouse
    View by appointment
  15. page boy's suit
    Page boy's suit, about 1894, England
    V&A South Kensington
    Not on display
  16. wedding dress
    Wedding dress, designed by Norman Hartnell, 1933, London, England
    V&A East Storehouse
    View by appointment
  17. wedding hat
    Wedding hat, manufactured by Paul Walser Ltd (Reslaw), 1947, UK
    V&A East Storehouse
    View by appointment
  18. wedding dress and shoes
    (Detail) Wedding dress and shoes, made for Stern Bros, by Francis O'Neill, 1890, New York, US
    V&A East Storehouse
    Not on display
  19. Panorama of a Fashionable Wedding, The Illustrated London News Ltd, 1855, London, United Kingdom. Museum no. NAL 172935. © Victoria and Albert Museum, London

V&A Shop

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Barbara Goalen in evening dress in the Underground

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Voici mes ailes!

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Necklace

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Printed design for embroidery

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Silk dress fabric

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Design for a panther on a branch brooch – 8 x 8 mounted print

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Design for a panther on a branch brooch – 8 x 8 mounted print

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Design for the Queen's ruby Cartier brooch – 8 x 8 mounted print

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Design for the Queen's ruby Cartier brooch – 8 x 8 mounted print

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Marie Antoinette Style exhibition poster

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Marie Antoinette Style exhibition poster

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Les Liaisons Dangereuses by George Barbier - A3 print

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Les Liaisons Dangereuses by George Barbier - A3 print

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Dior's Justine gown, fashion illustration

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La Rosarie by George Barbier – 11 x 14” mounted print

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La Rosarie by George Barbier – 11 x 14” mounted print

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Five hat designs, fashion sketch

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The Flower Garden - A4 print

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The Flower Garden - A4 print

£12.50

Balenciaga gowns, fashion illustration

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Diamants Mystérieux by Horst P. Horst – print with folio

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Diamants Mystérieux by Horst P. Horst – print with folio

£60

Victor Stiebel ballgown, fashion illustration

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Les Filles d'Eve book plate - 8 x 10" mounted print

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Les Filles d'Eve book plate - 8 x 10" mounted print

£12.50

Winter court robe worn by the Emperor Qianlong

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Winter court robe worn by the Emperor Qianlong

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Une Dame du Chateau by George Barbier - 8 x 10 " mounted print

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Une Dame du Chateau by George Barbier - 8 x 10 " mounted print

£12.50

Au Polo

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Phyllis Taylor evening gown, fashion illustration

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Coral-like chintz textile design

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Fashion: An Anthology by Cecil Beaton exhibition poster

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Rococo bonnets fashion plate - 11 x 14 " mounted print

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Rococo bonnets fashion plate - 11 x 14 " mounted print

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Plato's Atlantis, dress, Alexander McQueen, Spring/Summer 2010, London, England. Museum no. T.11-2010. © Victoria and Albert Museum, London

Collections

Fashion

Header image:
Background image: Wedding Dress and veil, Pam Hogg, 2012, UK. Museum no. T.5-2014. © Victoria and Albert Museum, London Wedding Dress and veil, Pam Hogg, 2012, UK. Museum no. T.5-2014. © Victoria and Albert Museum, London