Dale Frost holds the wedding ring which he purchased for his partner Mark Massey before their wedding at the City Clerk's Office in New York October 11, 2012. The couple met in 2010 and decided to make the trek from their home state of Georgia to marry in New York, where same sex marriage is legal. Andrew Kelly/Reuters
Ruth Langstraat (l.) and Roxanne Whitelight celebrate the US Supreme Court ruling striking down the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) in Terry Schrunk Plaza in Portland, Ore. The couple were married in December 2012 in Vancouver, Wash. Allison Milligan/The Oregonian/AP
Daniel Beechler of Madison, Wis. (c.) joins supporters celebrating a US Supreme Court ruling overturning the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) during a parade around the Wisconsin State Capitol, June 26, 2013. The decision grants federal benefits to married couples in states that recognize same-sex marriage, although Wisconsin is not one of them. John Hart/Wisconsin State Journal/AP
Paul Clement, standing second right, with Solicitor General Donald Verrilli Jr., seated right, addresses the US Supreme Court in Washington, March 27, 2013, as the court heard arguments on the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) case. Justices, from left, are Sonia Sotomayor, Stephen Breyer, Clarence Thomas, Antonin Scalia, Chief Justice John Roberts, Anthony Kennedy, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Samuel Alito, and Elena Kagan. Dana Verkouteren/AP
Plaintiff Edith Windsor of New York reacts as she looks toward supporters in front of the US Supreme Court in Washington, March 27, 2013, after the court heard arguments on the Defense Against Marriage Act (DOMA). The high court, in the second day of gay marriage cases, turned Wednesday to a constitutional challenge to the federal law that prevents legally married gay Americans from collecting federal benefits generally available to straight married couples. Carolyn Kaster/AP
Emily Lehrer (l.) kisses her wife B.J. Rimel after getting married as their daughter Chava, 5, and son Solomon, 16 months, look on in West Hollywood, Calif., July 1, 2013. Lucy Nicholson/Reuters
Michael Deschenes (l.) and Cary Bass, who had a church wedding and plan to become legally married, stand at a celebration for the US Supreme Court's rulings on DOMA and California's Proposition 8 in San Francisco's Castro District, June 26, 2013. The high court let stand a lower-court ruling that said Prop. 8, which banned same-sex marriage, is unconstitutional. Mathew Sumner/AP
Revelers party in the street at a celebration for the US Supreme Court's rulings on Prop. 8 and DOMA in the Castro District in San Francisco, June 26, 2013. Mathew Sumner/AP
Theresa Volpe (l.) testifies alongside her daughter, Ava, as her partner, Mercedes Santos, sits with their son, Jaidon, during an executive committee hearing of the Illinois Senate about same-sex marriage, at the State Capitol, Jan. 3, 2013, in Springfield, Ill. Seth Perlman/AP
Australian MP Ian Hunter (l.) holds hands with his partner, Leith Semmens, during their wedding in the town of Jun, southern Spain, Dec. 19, 2012. Hunter told Australian media that the two had decided to marry in Spain given that gay marriage is not legal in Australia. Pepe Marin/Reuters
Frances Newby prepares to slice a wedding cake to celebrate the passage of Amendment One at an election night party in Raleigh, N.C., on May 8, 2012. North Carolina voters approved the constitutional amendment defining marriage solely as a union between a man and a woman, becoming the latest state to refuse to allow same-sex marriages. Robert Willett/The News & Observer/AP
Sandy Stier, left, and Kris Perry of Berkeley, Calif., arrive at the National Archives in Washington March 25, 2013, to view the US Constitution, a day before their same-sex marriage case is heard before the Supreme Court. Jose Luis Magana/AP
Zachariah Long, (l.), and Edward Ritchie protest against a gay marriage bill on Feb. 17, 2012 in Annapolis, Md. Patrick Semansky/AP
Carmela Kenney arranges a bridal veil for a same-sex pair of mannequins in the window of Sposabella Couture June 27, 2011, in Brooklyn, N.Y. New York businesses that cater to the wedding and honeymoon trade were seeking an economic jolt from the passage of the same-sex marriage law. Mark Lennihan/AP
Jonathan Paul Ganucheau kisses his bride, Denise Buckbinder Ganucheau, in Washington on May 5, 2009. The Dallas, Texas, couple wed in a religious ceremony that was part of a protest against the decision of the District of Columbia City Council to approve legislation recognizing same sex marriages performed in other states. Jacquelyn Martin/AP
Gay couple Ethan Collings (l.) and his spouse, Stephen Abate, hug as they celebrate their one-year wedding anniversary in West Hollywood, Calif., on June 16, 2009. Lucy Nicholson/Reuters
Gina Smith (l.,) her partner, Heidi Norton, and son Avery react to applause from the crowd outside City Hall in Northampton, Mass., Jan. 17, 2004, after getting their marriage certificate. They were one of seven gay couples who brought a court case to allow gay marriage in Massachusetts. Melanie Stetson Freeman/The Christian Science Monitor
Queen Elizabeth II signed into law a bill legalizing same-sex marriages in England and Wales on Wednesday. France has also legalized gay marriages, but after massive public protests.
The French like to make fun of the British, joking about their repressed ways in matters of the heart. But when it came time to debate same-sex marriage, it was France that betrayed a deep conservative streak in sometimes violent protests — while the British showed themselves to be modern and tolerant.
/Photo-Galleries/Photos-of-the-Day/2013/Photos-of-the-day-07-18
/Photo-Galleries/In-Pictures/Talking-peace-in-the-Middle-East
/Photo-Galleries/In-Pictures/Kashmir-Color-light-and-conflict
/Photo-Galleries/In-Pictures/From-Field-to-Fork-The-foreign-and-domestic-food-chain
/Photo-Galleries/Photos-of-the-Day/2013/Photos-of-the-day-07-17
/Photo-Galleries/In-Pictures/Around-the-world-with-John-Kerry
/Photo-Galleries/In-Pictures/Where-Our-Clothes-Come-From
/Photo-Galleries/In-Pictures/Wildfires-2013
/Photo-Galleries/In-Pictures/Facebook-fans-caption-Monitor-photos
/Photo-Galleries/Photos-of-the-Day/2013/Photos-of-the-day-07-16
/Photo-Galleries/In-Pictures/The-kings-and-queens-of-modern-monarchies
/Photo-Galleries/Photos-of-the-Day/2013/Photos-of-the-day-07-15