This wedding entry is for Victoria Alberta McDonald and Alfred Blaker, who married in Crathie, Aberdeenshire on 4 November 1897.
It’s particularly notable for the identity of one of the witnesses – Victoria R. I. The initials stand for “Regina et Imperatrix” or “Queen and Empress”.
The bride at this wedding, Victoria McDonald, was the daughter of Annie McDonald and John McDonald, a royal footman who had died before his daughter’s marriage. Victoria was born in Windsor in 1864, three years after the death of Prince Albert.
It’s likely that as a loyal servant, John chose to name his daughter “Victoria Alberta” after both the Queen and her late husband.
Working as a royal footman, John would have travelled with the rest of the household on their annual visits to Balmoral. That’s probably how Queen Victoria came to know John’s family, and later attend his daughter’s wedding.
You can access Scotland’s marriage records, as well as registers of births, deaths and much more at ScotlandsPeople, our ancestry research service.
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