HBO’s The Gilded Age Season 3 continues to dazzle viewers with opulence, ambition, and drama—and none more so than the much-anticipated wedding of Gladys Russell to the Duke of Buckingham, which aired in the July 13 episode, Marriage Is a Gamble. With its layers of historical reference, fashion homage, and emotional complexity, the episode delivered the kind of unforgettable moment that defines great period television.
The fictional union, orchestrated by the formidable Bertha Russell (played with commanding precision by Carrie Coon), echoes the real-life marriage of American heiress Consuelo Vanderbilt to the Duke of Marlborough in 1895. Much like Vanderbilt—and later, Princess Diana—Gladys (Taissa Farmiga) enters a marriage of status rather than affection, highlighting the show’s ongoing exploration of power, sacrifice, and identity in Gilded Age society.
Costume designer Kasia Walicka-Maimone leaned heavily on historical influences to design the centerpiece of the episode: Gladys’s wedding gown. The dress, featuring long lace sleeves, a dramatic train, and delicately hand-stitched rosettes, draws direct visual parallels to both Consuelo Vanderbilt’s and Princess Diana’s iconic bridal looks. In a global effort, the gown’s floral embellishments and fabric were sourced from New York’s garment district, while the dress itself was constructed in Italy by the renowned Tirelli Costumi. The lace veil was crafted in England, and jewelry from Italian brand Pikkio completed the ensemble.
Adding to the richness of the scene were the bridesmaids’ pastel gowns, historically accurate suiting for high-society guests, and the dramatic setting—each element curated to elevate the moment into a true “wedding of the century.”
Bertha’s motivations are clear: to secure her daughter’s future in the British aristocracy and cement her family’s ascent from new money to old-world prestige. Yet the emotional cost of this ambition is not lost on viewers—or on Gladys. The episode masterfully balances visual grandeur with personal heartbreak, underscoring the show’s critique of social climbing and inherited privilege.
Much like the real women who inspired it, this Gilded Age wedding is less a fairy tale and more a cautionary tale wrapped in silk and lace. And for fans of historical drama, it is the kind of scene that lingers long after the credits roll.
