The Duchess of Alba, the most titled noble in the world, married a civil servant 24 years her junior in the Spanish city of Seville on Wednesday afternoon.
The 85-year-old, known for her eccentricity and flamboyance, married Alfonso Diez Carabantes, 61, in the 15th century chapel of her estate the Palacio de las Duenas in the southern city. The bride wore a salmon-coloured gown by Andalusian designers, Victorio & Lucchino.
Hundreds of local well-wishers gathered outside the estate on Wednesday morning in celebration of the event. Some donned curly white wigs in honour of the Duchess' trademark bouffant hair. They were rewarded for their patience when she came out of the palace after the ceremony, threwing her bouquet into the crowd and flamenco dancing for the assembled paparazzi.
Alba has been a regular topic in Spanish gossip over the years - from her controversial second marriage to a defrocked Jesuit priest, to being asked to pose nude for Picasso in her youth.
However, she has had to overcome the reservations of the Spanish royal family, who object to her groom's commoner status. The King and Queen of Spain, who are close friends of hers, cannot attend because royal protocol only permits their attendance at first marriages.
Her children have been similarly unenthusiastic about the match. The duchess has spoken candidly of their objections, telling the Daily Telegraph: "They don't want me to marry, but they change partners more often than I do."
The Duchess - whose full name is Maria del Rosario Cayetana Alfonsa Victoria Eugenia Francisca Fitz-James Stuart y de Silva - has 44 noble titles and 150 hereditary ones to her name and, with her property and extensive art masterpieces, is reportedly worth up to £3 billion. As head of the House of Alba, noble protocol allows her to ride a horse into Seville Cathedral and she does not have to kneel before the Pope.
Despite the excitement over the impending nuptials, they were nearly overshadowed by a Spanish magazine publishing old topless photographs of the Duchess sunbathing in Ibiza on the eve of the wedding. The Duchess may sue the publication.
The ceremony hit further problems when her only daughter said that she would not be attending due to chickenpox. Her son, Jacobo, also did not attend.