Kate Middleton & Prince William's Private Wedding After Party Had Incredibly Personal Meaning

Catherine, Princess of Wales and William, Prince of Wales' wedding was a modern fairytale and the favorite royal wedding of The List readers on Facebook. The Westminster Abbey ceremony was streamed so fans at home could watch, as were their post-wedding kisses at Buckingham Palace. However, royal watchers were not privy to details about Kate Middleton and William's private wedding after party until Kate's brother James Middleton published his book "Meet Ella: The Dog Who Saved My Life."

Technically, Kate and William had three celebrations after their ceremony. The first was thrown by the late Queen Elizabeth II and included 650 or so guests out of the approximately 1,900 that attended the ceremony. Then, King Charles III threw another after party with 300 of the guests. Lastly, Carole Middleton and Michael Middleton threw an exclusive party for 100 guests at the Goring Hotel (though it was still not as exclusive as Kate's bachelorette party). The night prior to the wedding, James and Ella wandered around and ended up in the hotel's garden, where his parents' event would be. James explained the Middleton's personal connection to the decor.

"There, a replica of Basil's Bar in Mustique — a small private island in the Grenadines and a holiday spot the family had visited many times — has been set up," James said in his book (via Hello!). "Basil himself is to be one of the wedding guests. ... Now a perfect facsimile of it has been built in the grounds of the Goring Hotel so wedding guests can imagine themselves on the edge of the Caribbean while actually in the middle of a London garden."

Something else James Middleton wrote about in his memoir was when Catherine, Princess of Wales and William, Prince of Wales asked him to read from the Bible at their wedding. James was anxious about doing so due to his dyslexia, but he worked hard to prepare for the big moment. In an exclusive snippet from "Meet Ella" that the Daily Mail shared before its publication, James wrote about working extensively with Anthony Gordon Lennox on his public speaking, and practicing alone (with Ella) as well. 

"There was only one chance to rehearse at Westminster Abbey — on the evening before the wedding," James said. He brought Ella along again, and Lennox timed James. He did a great job rehearsing, and he performed just as well during the ceremony. "I wanted to do them both proud," he said of Kate Middleton and William. However, the fanfare of a royal wedding didn't change James' priorities. He wrote, "Then, the reading successfully over, after all the wonder of the day, the service then the celebrations, all I wanted to do was throw on a pair of old jeans and take Ella out for a walk."

For more, check out the surprising offer James got after his appearance at Kate's wedding.