There's an Empowering Reason for Princess Eugenie's Open-Back Wedding Dress

The Real Housewives of Atlanta's Eva Marcille said she felt like a princess this week at her fairytale wedding — and it turns out her ball gown was right on royal trend! Princess Eugenie just got married today to Jack Brooksbank at St. George’s Chapel in Windsor Castle, and her gorgeous wedding gown incorporated a folded portrait neckline that was quite similiar to Eva's dress. She wore a tiara, too, just like Eva (although the Queen herself lent her emerald tiara to Princess Eugenie for the occasion). 

One big difference: Princess Eugenie's dress is long-sleeved, like the wedding gowns worn by Meghan Markle and Kate Middleton before her. That's no coincidence. The princess and her dress designers, Peter Pilotto and Christopher De Vos of the British-based label Peter Pilotto, landed on the silhouette after researching other wedding gowns worn by royal family members, PEOPLE reports.

The entire dress with its dramatic train is woven through with significance for the royal couple. For example, the fabric's pattern includes a shamrock as a nod to Princess Eugenie's heritage and some ivy to symbolize the couple's home.

The scooping back of the dress is a powerful statement, too: Princess Eugenie purposefully wanted to show the world her scar from the scoliosis surgery she had at age 12 to correct a curvature in her spine. She reportedly invited her surgeons from Britain's National Health Service to her big day, so they could see her stand tall to marry Jack Brooksbank.

"It’s a lovely way to honor the people who looked after me and a way of standing up for young people who also go through this," Princess Eugenie said in a TV interview before the wedding. "I think you can change the way beauty is, and you can show people your scars and I think it’s really special to stand up for that."

We can't be the only ones tearing up a bit thanks to this princess bride, can we?