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The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge - The most talked about and anticipated event of the year, the wedding of Prince William of Wales and Catherine “Kate” Middleton took place Friday morning at London’s Westminster Abbey. The world has been in a frenzy over the pending nuptials ever since it was announced that the longtime couple were engaged last fall. Get some background on the couple and information on the event in the following pages.Vote: Did you watch the wedding? (Photo: AP Photo/APTN) 

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Newlyweds - In addition to their new titles as the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, William was named the Earl of Strathearn and Baron Carrickfergus and Catherine is now the Countess of Strathearn and Baroness Carrickfergus. (Photo: AP Photo/APTN)

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After the Ceremony - The happy couple leave Westminster Abbey. (Photo: AP Photo/Gareth Fuller-pa)

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The Kiss - Prince William kisses Kate, the Dutchess of Cambridge, on the balcony of Buckingham Palace.  (Photo: AP Photo/APTN)

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The In-Laws - From left, Prince Phillip; the bride's mother, Carole Middleton; Queen Elizabeth II and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall. (Photo: AP Photo/Martin Meissner)

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All Hail the Queen - Queen Elizabeth II rides in a carriage with Prince Philip on their way back to Buckingham Palace. (Photo: AP Photo/Matt Dunham)

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The Happy Couple - Prince William and Kate Middleton met in 2001 while they were both undergraduate students at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland. The two continued a relationship throughout most of the years.(Photo: AP Photo/Tim Hales, File)

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Prince William’s Parents - Prince William’s parents are Prince Charles of Wales and the late Princess Diana of Wales, who died in a car accident in 1997. As the eldest son Queen Elizabeth II, Prince Charles is the heir apparent to the throne. Charles and Diana separated in 1992 and divorced in 1996 amidst allegations of adultery. In 2005, Prince Charles married Camilla Parker Bowles, his accused mistress and who is known as the Duchess of Cornwall.(Photo: AP Photo/Pool, File)

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Kate's Parents - The Middleton clan is blessed with strong ties and commercial savvy. Kate's parents, Michael and Carole, went from airline employees to owners of a successful small business who gained their children access to Britain's loftiest social circles. Michael Middleton was a flight dispatcher and Carole Goldsmith a flight attendant before they married; in the 1980s, they set up Party Pieces, a business selling balloons, candles, streamers and other mail-order party supplies. (Photo: AP Photo/Stefan Rousseau, pool)

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The Engagement - The couple got engaged in October of last year while on vacation in Kenya and it was officially announced Nov. 16, 2010. After the wedding the two will continue to reside at the Isle of Anglesey in Wales where the prince is stationed as a pilot for the Royal Air Force.(Photo: AP Photo/Alastair Grant, Pool)

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Kate’s Crest - In preparation for the nuptials, Kate Middleton got a coat of arms for the Middleton family by the Once married, the Middleton crest will be merged with Prince William’s coat of arms. Kate's design features a tied ribbon to show she is an unmarried woman and the overall shape is an elaborate lozenge -- a shield would be used for Middleton men. (AP Photo/Suzanne Plunkett, pool)

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The Wedding Party - Kate’s sister, Pippa, will serve as her maid of honor and Prince Harry will be his brother’s best man. The  bridesmaids include: seven-year-old Lady Louise Windsor (the prince’s cousin), three-year-old Grace van Cutsem (the prince’s goddaughter), and eight-year-old Margarita Armstrong-Jones (the prince’s second cousin). Ten-year-old William Lowther Pinkerton (who is the son of William's private secretary) and his eight-year-old godson Tom Pettifer are also part of the Royal Wedding Party.(Photo: AP Photo/Scott Heppell, File)

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The Ceremony - The wedding will take place at Westminster Abbey starting at 11 a.m. London time (6 a.m. Eastern). The Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams will marry the couple. Performers at the ceremony will include the choir of Westminster Abbey, the Chapel Royal Choir, the London Chamber Orchestra, the Fanfare Team from the Central Band of the Royal Air Force and the State Trumpeters of the Household Cavalry, according to the couple’s official wedding site.(Photo: Courtesy of Wesminster Abbey)

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Post Ceremony Procession - This carriage, the State Landau built for King Edward VII in 1902 will transport the bride and groom after the wedding ceremony to Buckingham Palace, where the reception will take place.(Photo: AP Photo/Dominic Lipinski, Pool, File)

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Reception - Queen Elizabeth will host the reception at Buckingham Palace following the ceremony. In lieu of gifts, the couple is requesting that people donate to the Royal Wedding Charitable Gift Fund, made up of various charitable organizations the couple chose themselves.(Photo: AP Photo/Lefteris Pitarakis)

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Rehearsal - Kate Middleton and Prince William’s brother and best man Prince Harry leave Westminster Abbey after a rehearsal in readiness for the royal wedding, Thursday.(Photo: AP Photo/Sang Tan)

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Rehearsal—Household Calvary - Soldiers of the Household Cavalry wait for orders outside Westminster Abbey as they take part in an overnight dress rehearsal for the Royal Wedding.(Photo: AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

Photo By Photo: AP Photo/Alastair Grant

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The Costs - While there won’t be an official estimate on the wedding costs until after the ceremony, reports are estimating the costs to top 20 million pounds. In addition, with an extra public holiday, the economy could lose six billion pounds in lost output, Reuters reports. The tourism boost to the economy is not yet known.  However after Prince Charles wed Princess Diana in 1981, the economy actually shrunk despite the increase in tourism the ceremony brought, the news service reports.(Photo: AP Photo/Akira Suemori)

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The Dress - The ivory and white satin dress—with its low neckline, high lace collar, long lacy sleeves and a train over 2-meters long—was created by Sarah Burton, who is the head designer at Alexander McQueen. Middleton's hair was half-up, half-down and decorated with dramatic veil and a tiara on loan from Queen Elizabeth II. The designer of the dress was a well-kept secret. (Photo:  AP Photo/Dave Thompson, Pool)

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Kate's Style - As her public profile continued to rise with her attendance at various royal events, many began praising Kate’s style, prompting comparisons to Prince William’s mother, the late Princess Diana. Diana made People magazine’s best-dressed list in 2007 and 2010 and made Richard Blackwell's 10 "Fabulous Fashion Independents" in 2007.(Photo: AP Photo/Harry Page, The Daily Mirror, pool, File)

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Royal Fan - Terry Hutt, a devoted fan of the British Royal Family, sits outside his tent near Westminster Abbey in central London on Wednesday. Hutt was one of the first people to arrive for the event and will sleep on the street to hold prime position for the wedding. (Photo: AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

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Happy Campers - Faith Nicholson from East London adjusts a sign reading "It should have been me" as she sits in front of her tent in front of Westminster Abbey Wednesday. (Photo: AP Photo/Gero Breloer)

Photo By Photo: AP Photo/Gero Breloer

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Worldwide Royal Wedding Frenzy - The nuptials have ignited copycat weddings around the globe. In this photo taken last week, 23-year-old Wang Xueqian, center right, and his bride Yao Yan walk together during a wedding ceremony in Nanjing city in east China's Jiangsu province. The couple tied the knot with a procession inspired by the British royal wedding, donning ceremonial gowns and riding in a horse-drawn carriage flanked by guards in scarlet uniforms. Wang paid more than $7,600 dollars for the wedding parade involving about 50 people, a dozen cars and two horses.(Photo: AP)

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Ceremony in Peru - A Peruvian shaman performs in front of a photo of the couple during a ritual to send good vibes to their wedding on La Herradura beach in Lima, Peru, Wednesday. (Photo: AP Photo/Martin Mejia)

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In Australia - Two 100-foot mosaic brick walls of Britain's Prince William and Kate Middleton stand in an open field beside a busy expressway in Sydney, Australia, Thursday. (Photo: AP Photo/Rob Griffith)

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In India - Traffic moves past a giant billboard advertising the royal wedding in Mumbai, India, Thursday. (Photo: AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool)

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Mock Royal Wedding in Indonesia - Indonesian students wear masks of Prince William and Kate Middleton as they parade on a traditional tricycle called a becak on a street in Solo, Central Java, Indonesia, Thursday. Text on the portrait on the right says "Happy wedding.” (Photo: AP Photo)

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International Campers - Royal supporters Susanna Brockman, left, from Maryland, and Chelsea and Jessica Spence, right, both from Zimbabwe, wear their support for the happy couple near Westminster Abbey, Thursday. (Photo: AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

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More Campers - Fans use an umbrella to protect themselves from the sun as they sleep in front of Westminster Abbey, Thursday. (Photo: AP Photo/Gero Breloer)

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Royal Wedding Stamps - A Royal Wedding Presentation Pack being sold by the U.S. Postal Service. Britain's Royal Mail issued a special commemorative stamp for the wedding, and American postal authorities are offering it as part of a commemorative packet. (Photo: AP Photo/USPS)

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Merchandise - A worker holds up a T-shirt with a print showing the couple at a workshop in Linyi city in eastern China's Shandong province Wednesday.(Photo: AP)

Photo By Photo: AP

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Protests - Islamic protestors hold banners as they speak with London media Wednesday. The protestors have been banned by police from demonstrating during the royal wedding. (Photo: AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

Photo By Photo: AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth

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Watching the Wedding - There is no way to escape the Royal event, as networks will broadcast the event live and several sites, including YouTube will stream it live as well. There is also a screen set up in New York City’s Time Square (pictured) for a viewing party. Britain’s Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt has estimatedthat two billion people worldwide will be tuning in to the royal nuptials. This figure is more than twice the number of people who watched Prince Charles marry Princess Diana almost 30 years ago.  Where will you be watching the wedding?(Photo: AP)