Kim Kardashian and Kanye West’s Wedding in Florence, 2014
A rehearsal dinner at Versailles, a Medici fortress above Florence, a wall of flowers and a Givenchy Haute Couture gown by Riccardo Tisci. The social-media wedding, before anyone called it that.
Kim Kardashian and Kanye West married at the Forte di Belvedere in Florence on May 24, 2014, after a weekend that moved from a lunch at Valentino’s château to a dinner in the Hall of Mirrors at Versailles and on to Tuscany. It was a wedding designed for pictures, in the most literal sense: family and guests shared much of the build-up on Instagram as it happened, and a wedding photograph the couple posted afterward set a record for likes on the platform. Few weddings have been seen by so many people so quickly.
| At a glance | |
|---|---|
| Date | Saturday, May 24, 2014 |
| Place (ceremony) | Forte di Belvedere, Florence, Italy |
| Reception | At the Forte di Belvedere, at a long marble banquet table overlooking the city |
| The dress (designer) | Givenchy Haute Couture by Riccardo Tisci |
| Guests | Family and friends, including Kris Jenner, the bride’s sisters and John Legend |
| Officiant | Rich Wilkerson Jr., pastor of Trinity Church, Miami |
The couple
Kardashian and West had known each other for nearly a decade before they became a couple. “We met, maybe almost a decade ago,” she said. Their daughter, North, was born in 2013, and West proposed on October 21, 2013, Kardashian’s 33rd birthday. It was his first marriage and her third.
The weekend
The celebrations began in Paris, with a lunch hosted by Valentino at his château and, on Friday, May 23, a rehearsal dinner at the Palace of Versailles, where Lana Del Rey performed in the Hall of Mirrors. The party then moved to Florence.
The ceremony
The Forte di Belvedere was built between 1590 and 1595 by the architect Bernardo Buontalenti for Grand Duke Ferdinando I de’ Medici, and its terraces look across the whole of Florence. The couple reportedly paid the city €300,000 for its use. The bride’s stepparent, Caitlyn Jenner, walked her down the aisle; North was the flower girl. Andrea Bocelli sang the processional, and Pastor Rich Wilkerson Jr., of Trinity Church in Miami, officiated. The couple used traditional vows. Behind them stood a towering wall of white flowers, gardenias, peonies and roses, made by the Florentine florist Fiori della Signoria; it screened the ceremony from view and became the most talked-about detail of the day.
The dress
Kardashian’s gown was a custom Givenchy Haute Couture design by Riccardo Tisci, then the house’s creative director. It was fitted through the body in floral lace, with sheer cut-out panels and a long circular train, and was worn with a sheer veil edged in delicate florals. The final fitting took place at Givenchy’s atelier in Paris. West wore a custom Givenchy tuxedo. For the reception she changed into a short cream-colored dress by Balmain.
The gown was first seen in public three days later, when Kardashian, Tisci and Givenchy posted photographs at the same time. “Breathtaking,” wrote her mother, Kris Jenner. For more of the gowns that defined their decade, see our guide to celebrity wedding dresses.
The reception
Dinner, organized by the event planner Sharon Sacks, was served at a single long marble table on a platform above the city: a four-course meal followed by a seven-tier wedding cake. West gave a long toast to his new wife, reported at about twenty minutes, and John Legend sang for the couple’s first dance.
What came after
The couple had four children: North, Saint, Chicago and Psalm. Kardashian filed for divorce in February 2021, citing irreconcilable differences. She was declared legally single in March 2022, and the divorce was settled in November 2022, with joint custody of the children.
Why it mattered
Florence was where the celebrity wedding met social media. Weddings had been photographed and sold before; this one was shared, piece by piece, by the people in it. Flower walls became a fixture of weddings in the years that followed, the multi-day wedding weekend, with a different setting for each event, looked newly possible, and the idea of revealing the dress on your own terms, on your own channels, is now standard. For a very different approach from the same era, compare Beyoncé and Jay-Z.
Borrow the idea
Build one great backdrop. A flower wall behind the ceremony gives every photograph a frame. A smaller version in greenery with a few white blooms costs far less; ask your florist. See flowers by season.
Seat everyone at one table. A single long table, even for 60 or 80, makes a dinner feel like a family meal. Rental companies can quote for long tables and runners.
Plan a second look for dancing. A short dress for the reception is practical and gives your photographs a change of pace. Our guide to the wedding dress covers lengths and fabrics.
Decide how you’ll share it. If you want to post your own photographs first, say so on your invitation or wedding website, and ask guests to wait until you have.
Written and edited by the Today’s Weddings editors. How we research and check what we publish is set out in our editorial standards. Spotted something wrong? Tell us.
