Queen Camilla loves a jewellery surprise and she pulled another one as she joined King Charles for a State Dinner in their honour at the White House.
On the second evening of their historic State Visit to the US, The King and Queen were the guests of President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump at the glittering gala event in Washington.
The Queen chose not to wear a tiara for the State Dinner. Instead, she chose some of the biggest gems in the royal collection.
For the first time, Queen Camilla was seen wearing a necklace belonging to one of the oldest sets of jewels the royals own. The stunning piece is part of the Kent Amethysts, a striking set of gems that pre date the reign of Queen Victoria.
In fact, they’re called the Kent Amethysts because they originally belonged to Victoria, The Duchess of Kent who was Queen Victoria’s mother. She brought them with her when she married into the Royal Family. Her husband was Edward, The Duke of Kent and fourth son of King George III. The couple wed in 1818 when a succession crisis hit the royals and the unmarried sons of George III set out to find wives to try and secure the throne. Edward and Victoria’s only child became that guarantee and succeeded as Queen Victoria in 1837.
Queen Victoria inherited the jewels form her mother and made them heirlooms of the Crown, meaning they can never be given away. Queen Elizabeth II wore some of the brooches belonging to the Kent Amethysts often but the necklace was less well used. This visit to the US is the first time that Queen Camilla has worn the gems.
It’s an impressive piece and contains three huge oval amethysts surrounded by diamonds as well as slightly smaller versions of the purple gem, again encircled by diamonds. It’s among the largest necklaces in the royal collections.
The Queen also wore the earrings that are part of his historic set. The bright purple jewels were paired with a fuchsia pink evening gown by one of Queen Camilla’s favourite designers, Fiona Clare.
It was a perfect foil for the pale pink, structured gown chose by First Lady Melania Trump for the State Dinner which saw guests enjoy a meal that included some of the White House honey that the US leader and his wife had shown to King Charles and Queen Camilla at the start of their State Visit.
The State Dinner came at the end of a day of pageantry which had seen King Charles and Queen Camilla given a ceremonial official welcome at the White House. They joined President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump on the Truman balcony of the White House to watch a military display.
King Charles alter met Donald Trump in the Oval Office while Queen Camilla and Melania Trump spent time with young students learning about the shared history of the US and the UK.
