Meghan Markle Is Glowing At Her First Public Appearance As A Duchess

Three days after her wedding, Meghan Markle still has that newlywed glow — as if we'd expect anything less — and we're getting our first glimpse of her as a real duchess on duty. The Duchess of Sussex absolutely looked the part as she appeared at Prince Charles' birthday garden party at Buckingham Palace on Tuesday afternoon.

According to royal protocol (per the Daily Mail), everyone should now curtsy to Markle, refer to her as "Her Royal Highness" and address her as "Ma'am." Along with the title, also comes a dress code — which the duchess pulled off gracefully on Tuesday with an ivory dress with a sheer neckline and sleeves by Goat and (ew, sorry, Ma'am) stockings. There's still something saucy about her Philip Treacy hat, worn tilted at the perfect angle so we could still see all of her facial expressions. She’ll still get to express her personal style somehow!

That last part was key, because her new husband, Harry the Duke of Sussex, gave a speech at the party, officially dubbed the Prince of Wales' 70th Birthday Patronage Celebration. Though Prince Charles turned 70 last November, this fair-weather celebration honors not just him but his 386 patronages (charity causes), with more than 6,000 guests. It was also held on the first anniversary of the Manchester Arena terrorist attack, something Harry noted in his speech.

"We're here today to reflect on and to celebrate my father's dedicated support to all of you and the work that you do," Harry began. "But first I would like us to take a moment to remember all those affected by the tragic events of the Manchester Arena a year ago. We are fortunate to have over 250 representative from the emergency services here today. It is right that we take a moment to recognize the amazing work they do every day and how each member of our blue light services rise to meet the challenge of tragic events, such as the attack a year ago."

It wasn't all solemnity at the party, however, as we've seen in photos that something made Markle share a laugh with her new mother-in-law, Camilla the Duchess of Cornwall. This is a huge part of what royal life is going to be like for the former actress — lots and lots of charity events. But we're interested to see what she can do with that, especially now that we've seen how she made sure her Royal Wedding honored her African-American culture. According to the Telegraph, Markle has indicated that she'll probably be dedicating her efforts to feminist causes.

But first, let these kids go on their honeymoon already!