By Olivia Christie Published: 06:47 EDT, 19 October 2024 | Updated: 15:59 EDT, 19 October 2024
The two designers of Princess Diana’s wedding dress have settled a High Court battle over the auctioning of drawings of their designs.David Emanuel sued his ex-wife and business partner Elizabeth Emanuel over alleged copyright infringement nearly four years ago.He claimed she reproduced sketches of their designs for Diana, including the gown she wore to marry Prince Charles in 1981, and put them up for sale without his consent. However in a statement on Friday, the pair announced they had settled the case ‘amicably’.David and Elizabeth, who divorced in 1990, created a number of iconic clothes for Princess Diana together, the High Court in London was told. These included the chiffon blouse with ruff collar and satin that Diana wore for their official engagement photograph and the black evening gown she wore for her first royal engagement with Charles in 1981. Princess Diana in her wedding dress designed by David and Elizabeth Emanuel Elizabeth Emanuel and David Emanuel arrive at a reception for the British Clothing Industry at Buckingham Palace on March 16, 2010 A sketch of Princess Diana’s fairytale royal wedding gownElizabeth said: ‘During our time together, David and I created many of the most famous clothes of the 20th century.’David was instrumental in the success of The Emanuel Partnership and I am glad that we have put our recent differences behind us and can now look forward to continuing our respective careers.’David said: ‘Emanuel was at the forefront of haute couture in the 1980s until Elizabeth and I went our separate ways.’Our creations were very much in demand from the world’s most famous women throughout that period.’We had a very distinctive house style and in keeping with that we created some of the most iconic dresses of the 20th century.’The husband-wife duo were commissioned to design Diana’s wedding dress when they were in their late 20s and had just graduated from fashion school.Buckingham Palace shocked the world when they announced the decision, but Lady Diana Spencer had worked with the Emanuels on several prior occasions and was a fan of their work. Princess Diana’s wedding tiara, the Spencer Tiara, is a family heirloom adorned with flowers and diamonds in a silver setting. It’s now owned by Diana’s brother Earl Spencer. A sketch of the ‘one shoulder green gown’ created for Princess Diana Princess Diana wearing a green satin evening dress designed by David and Elizabeth Emanuel Princess Diana’s waist shrank from 29in to a tiny 23.5in in the months leading up to her wedding. Designers David and Elizabeth Emanuel sewed the princess into her dress on the big day.The dress had a record-breaking 25ft long, sequin-encrusted train and to make sure it would fit down the aisle, Elizabeth and David Emanuel secretly measured St Paul’s cathedral with a tape measure.The breath-taking ivory wedding gown cost approximately £9,000 ($12,000) in 1981 and is considered one of the most influential wedding dresses in history. David and Elizabeth met at the Harrow School of Art in 1974, when he was 22 and she was 21. They got married just two years later and became the first married couple to be accepted to the Royal College of Art.When they graduated in 1977, they started their fashion label and opened a studio opposite Claridge’s. Diana first worked with the Emanuels when she was looking for a dress for her first formal engagement with Prince Charles, picking a black strapless gown for the fundraising event at Goldsmith’s Hall. Princess Diana’s wedding train was a record breaking 25ft longa and embellished with pearls and sequins Princess Diana’s gown, designed by David and Elizabeth Emanuel, pictured on display at Kensington Palace’s exhibition Royal Style In The Making Elizabeth and David Emanuel designed Princess Diana’s wedding gown when they were both in their late 20s
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David Emanuel settles High Court row with his ex Elizabeth over Princess Diana’s wedding dress that stunned the world in 1981