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Fans of the royal family gathered in Windsor this morning ahead of Princess Eugenie's wedding to Jack Brooskank.

However, by mid-morning the well wishers were outnumbered by police officers.

The Long Walk up to Windsor Castle - packed with royalists for Meghan Markle and Prince Harry's wedding in May - was largely empty.

The couple will wed at St George's Chapel at 11am in front of 850 guests including celebs like Kate Moss and Demi Moore.

1,200 members of the public have also been invited to the castle's grounds for the occasion.

However, despite security for the wedding costing an estimated £2million, there were more police officers lining the streets than members of the public.

(Image: Beretta/Sims/REX/Shutterstock)

Pictures show officers chatting as they stand in front of railings on empty streets.

However, some ardent followers of the royal family have been there since earlier this week.

Kerry Evans, 54, from Lincolnshire has been in the crowds for the past two royal weddings.

She said: "I wanted to be part of the wedding and the traditions because it's all part of being being British. I thought there would be lots of people arriving but there aren't, I've been waiting and waiting."

(Image: Getty Images) (Image: Getty Images)

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Despite the lack of crowds gathering in Windsor, the policing and security bill is expected to be substantial.

While no official figures have been released, the cost of policing Harry and Meghan's wedding has been estimated at between £2 million and £4 million by the region's police and crime commissioner.

The extra costs stem from the couple's carriage ride around Windsor.

The carriage ride is not as long as that of her cousin, with the couple not travelling up the Long Walk to the castle like Harry and Meghan did.

Princess Eugenie and tequila brand ambassador Mr Brooksbank, who have been a couple for about seven years, announced their engagement in January.

It is the second royal wedding this year, following Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's nuptials in May - which was watched by an estimated 29 million people worldwide.

(Image: AFP/Getty Images) (Image: PA)

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It is understood the Royal Family is meeting the cost of the wedding privately, but this is still going to place a hefty security bill on the taxpayer.

Sources believe the cost of policing the event will be around £2 million, at the bottom end of the amount spent on Harry and Meghan's security.

It is well below the £6.35 million cost of policing Prince William's wedding to Kate Middleton in 2011.

This included £2.8 million on police overtime, with more than 5,000 officers on duty during the event.

The Met said the Home Office provided it with a £3.6 million grant to cover "additional costs".

There were reportedly 5,000 officers on duty during Prince Harry and Meghan's big day - including armed police, snipers and undercover officers.

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Thames Valley Police refused to say how many officers will be on duty during Princess Eugenie's ceremony and procession.

But it has stepped up operations in the town in the lead up to the wedding, in what will be a major security operation.

The force is using automatic number plate recognition technology and CCTV to monitor traffic and people entering the area - and will be setting up barriers to stop Nice-style terrorist attacks.

Officers with dogs have been patrolling the area, and the force said its armed officers will be more visible in the town centre.

It is understood Thames Valley Police will have to pay for security, but is able to apply for a Home Office grant to recoup some of the cash.

(Image: Getty Images)

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The Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead said it had used £2.6 million to improve the look of the region in time for Harry and Meghan's wedding.

But it insisted its clean-up and improvements, which included road surfacing, came from money that had already been earmarked for the work.

The total cost of the event to the council was £1.25 million, but the authority was reimbursed nearly £1.1 million by the Government.

The biggest costs were viewing areas, crowd barriers, toilets, traffic and pedestrian signs, and temporary parking.

(Image: PA)

This means the wedding actually only cost the Royal Borough £100,000. This included cleaning up the historic town after 100,000 people lined its streets to watch the happy couple's horse-drawn carriage ride.

The expected cost to taxpayers has sparked fierce criticism from republicans, with the anti-monarchist campaign group Republic racking up 35,000 signatures to a petition calling on Parliament to spend no public cash on the wedding.

But former Home Office minister and ex-Liberal Democrat MP Norman Baker called on the princess's father to foot the security bill for the grand affair.