The last tiara night of 2024 for the Royal Family brought a diamond debut and lots of aquamarines. The State Banquet held for the Amir of Qatar is also the last such event to be held at Buckingham Palace for several years as restoration work means that future State Visits will be hosted at Windsor Castle. And the Royal Family chose some historic gems for this historic event.
As Queen Camilla continues her recovery from pneumonia, she made her debut in the famous Queen Alexandra Kokkoshink Tiara. The tiara was seen a number of times on the Late Queen Elizabeth II.
The tiara has an interesting history. It came to Queen Alexandra when she was still Princess of Wales. In 1888, she celebrated her silver wedding anniversary and the ‘Ladies of Society’ raised money to buy the tiara for her. The design is based on a Russian Diamond Kokoshnik Tiara which was worn by her sister, Empress Marie Feodorovna of Russia. In addition to Queen Elizabeth II, the tiara has been worn by a number of famous royals like Queen Mary.
(Royal Family You Tube still/ fair use)
The Princess Royal chose a favourite gem, the Cartier Aquamarine Pineflower Tiara, for the State Banquet. The tiara was given to her by her late grandmother, the Queen Mother, ahead of her 1973 wedding to Captain Mark Phillips. The tiara has been seen several times over the years at state banquets and most recently, a dinner in 2019 to welcome President (and now President-elect) Donald Trump.
Sophie, the Duchess of Edinburgh, wore her signature Aquamarine Tiara, which is believed to have been a gift from Queen Elizabeth II. She wore it at a gala in 2005 to celebrate Prince Albert of Monaco’s enthronement. Since then, she’s become known for the tiara and she also wore it to Prince Carl Philip of Sweden and Princess Sofia’s 2015 wedding.
Birgitte, Duchess of Gloucester wore the Honeysuckle Tiara. This gem was commissioned by Queen Mary after the succession of her husband, King George V in 1910. Since then, the tiara has been repurposed with diamonds from Queen Mary’s wedding gifts. It was a favourite of the Duchess of Gloucester’s mother-in-law, Princess Alice, until her death in 2004.
