Angelina Jolie made a jaw-dropping appearance at St. Paul's Cathedral in London today for a royal ceremony honoring the 200th anniversary of the Most Distinguished Order of St. Michael and St. George. The actress was made an honorary dame in the order by the Queen in 2014, The Telegraph reports.
Jolie looked elegant as ever in a pale gray Ralph & Russo dress with a draped bateau neckline and a ruffled detail at the waist. (Real-life Duchess Meghan Markle wore the designer for her engagement portraits, and was rumored to wear the label on her wedding day.) For the finishing touches, Jolie added matching gloves, a chain strap clutch, and silver pumps.
She even got the fascinator down.
The Queen, who was supposed to officiate the ceremony, cancelled since she is feeling unwell, according to royal reporters. The Duke of Kent, Her Majesty's cousin, filled in for her at the ceremony.
Also missing were other recognizable royals including Meghan Markle, Prince Harry, Kate Middleton (who is on maternity leave), Prince William (who is on an official trip to Israel), Prince Charles, and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall.
The Queen named Jolie an Honorary Dame Grand Cross of the Most Distinguished Order of St. Michael and St. George four years ago to recognize Jolie's work fighting sexual violence and "services to UK foreign policy," per The Telegraph.
Now, Jolie is working on the Queen’s Commonwealth Canopy, which aims to create a network of forest conservation projects around the world. “The [project] means so much and will mean so much to so many people,” Jolie, an active conservationist, said in the documentary The Queen’s Green Planet.
“So, for us to come here and say to the children, ‘This is why it’s important to plant a tree,’ that’s the biggest message I can teach my kids and it’s something that they’ve certainly learned from Her Majesty and her message,” she added in the film.
It was previously rumored that Jolie would attend the royal wedding last month after she was seen arriving in London ahead of the ceremony. Though she was ultimately a no-show, today's appearance gave us an idea of what her wedding day outfit could've been like.
Can Angelina Jolie just attend every royal event going forward please?
Erica Gonzales is the Senior Culture Editor at ELLE.com, where she oversees coverage on TV, movies, music, books, and more. She was previously an editor at HarpersBAZAAR.com. There is a 75 percent chance she's listening to Lorde right now.
