Queen Elizabeth II yesterday sent a message of congratulations to His Majesty the Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam on the occasion of the royal wedding of His Majesty's daughter, Her Royal Highness Princess Hajah Hafizah Sururul Bolkiah, with Pengiran Haji Muhammad Ruzaini bin Pengiran Dr Hj Mohd Yakub.

Following is the full text of Queen Elizabeth II's message to His Majesty:

"Your Majesty, The Duke of Edinburgh joins me in congratulating you and Her Majesty the Raja Isteri on the occasion of your daughter's marriage. We wish Her Royal Highness Pengiran Anak Puteri Hajah Hafizah Sururul Bolkiah and her husband a happy life together. May their joy be shared by all the people of Brunei Darussalam. Your good friend, Elizabeth R."

In the message to Her Royal Highness Princess Hajah Hafizah Sururul Bolkiah, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II wrote: "Your Royal Highness, on the occasion of your marriage, the Duke of Edinburgh and I would like to wish you and Pengiran Haji Muhammad Ruzaini a happy wedding day and many blessed years together."

Meanwhile, British High Commissioner Rob Fenn expressed the delight he and his own family felt at being in Brunei for a royal wedding.

"We are immensely privileged to witness these momentous events.

"My country takes a certain pride in being able to match the pageantry to each occasion: Be it the Olympic or Paralympic Games or our own royal weddings.

"We know how much effort, skill and spirit needs to be put in, by the principals themselves, the huge teams of protocol, logistics and security personnel, and the population as a whole. Brunei's royal wedding is the genuine article. The whole country must be feeling proud of itself and its traditions this week."

According to the British High Commissioner, royal weddings are a marriage of the private and public domains. "Accordingly, these messages from my Sovereign operate on two levels. They underline the close and historic connections between our two states; and they are also intensely personal," he said. - Borneo Bulletin (22 September 2012)