The royal jewellery of the British royal family is as breathtaking as you’d imagine.
The royals have accumulated an extensive collection of diamond-encrusted tiaras, sapphire-adorned necklaces and sentimental trinkets over the years, with some items dating back to the 16th century.
Some of the beautiful pieces of royal jewellery have been centre stage during significant moments in history – from engagements, weddings to other times of celebration.
What continually delights royal enthusiasts is the fact some of the dazzling pieces of royal jewellery are shared or inherited by various members of the royal family so we’ll often see Duchess Catherine wear an item belonging to Queen Elizabeth II, Queen Mary or Princess Diana.
The precious jewels have even been refashioned over the years – just look at Meghan Markle’s engagement ring which Prince Harry chose to design with two of Diana’s diamonds.
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Without further ado, here is the (very impressive) collection of royal jewellery.
Princess Diana’s favourite tiara was the Cambridge Lover’s Knot. It was considered to be a favourite of Queen Mary too, who commissioned the precious item in 1913. It’s believed to have been modelled off of a tiara owned by her grandmother, Princess Augusta of Hesse, the-then Duchess of Cambridge.
After Mary’s death, the jewels were passed on to Queen Elizabeth in 1953. In her early reign, Elizabeth frequently wore the sparkling piece.
In 1983, she gifted it to Princess Diana, who often wore the sparkling bling to formal events. After her divorce from Prince Charles, the iconic headwear was returned back to The Queen.
Duchess Catherine was then loaned the iconic diamond and pearl Cambridge Lover’s Knot tiara – a beautiful homage to Diana.
The Queen still adores wearing something from her 1947 wedding day, the diamond fringe tiara. It is incredibly delicate and fragile. Many might not know that on the her big day, the tiara broke before the ceremony, only to be repaired in the nick of time.
Duchess Catherine was loaned the stunning jewel from her Grandmother-in-law, the Queen, for her first trip to Canada back in 2011.
The sparkling piece of jewellery was a present to the Queen Mother from her husband, King George VI. He gifted his wife the brooch to mark their state visit to Canada in 1939 (pictured on the left). Passing it to her daughter, a-then Princess Elizabeth wore the brooch for the very first time in 1951 and again in 1978 (pictured on the right).
The brooch, which is a creation by jewellers Asprey & Co., plays homage to Canada’s emblem the maple. And just like the leaf’s syrup, the Duchess thinks the bedazzled item is an exceptionally sweet accessory!
The royal family’s gorgeous Papyrus/Lotus Flower tiara was a personal favourite of Princess Margaret and owned by the Queen’s mother. Catherine, 33, became the Duchess of Sparkle when she made a glittering debut at her first state banquet last month.
One of the most prolific jewelled crowns, it was created in 1820 for the coronation of King George IV. You can now see it at the State Opening of Parliament – Queen Elizabeth wears it in the procession to the event every year.
Catherine’s most famous piece of borrowed jewellery is the Cartier Halo tiara, which she wore for her 2011 wedding. The tiara was gifted to a-then Princess Elizabeth on her 18th birthday by her mother. Apparently she wasn’t terribly fond of it and often gave it to her sister, Princess Margaret (Pictured right in 1955).
At the 2016 opening of Parliment, Duchess Camilla donned her most loved bejewelled accessory, the Greville Tiara. It was made a well-known socilatie Mrs. Greville back in 1921, out of stones salvaged from another tiara. Having no heirs of her own, she left her considerable jewel collection to the then-Queen Elizabeth (the future Queen Mother) when she died in 1942.
Sprucing up the piece, she sent the jewels to Cartier, who made it bigger, adding the stunning top layer of diamonds.
These days it’s Duchess Catherine who gets to enjoy the Queen’s impressive collection, including this exquisite necklace. She wore it during a visit to the National Portrait Gallery, in February 2014.
This necklace was given to the Queen from the Nizam of Hyderabad as a wedding present. Legend says he told the Queen to pick out anything she wanted from Cartier! And we now know why Elizabeth is brilliant ruler – she selected this glittering number, which features a chain of 38 diamonds plus a centre piece of 13 emerald-cut diamonds.
In an effort to make Catherine feel closer to his mother, William remodeled one of his Diana’s favourite earrings.
Sentimentality runs through many of the royals’ prized pieces. One of Duchess Catherine’s most cherished pieces is her engagement ring, which famously belonged to Princess Diana beforehand. Ceated by jeweller Garrard, it is one of the only royal rings that wasn’t custom-made! Still it is striking with its 14 solitaire diamonds and a 12-carat oval blue Ceylon sapphire set in 18-karat gold. The ring was given to Prince Harry after Diana passed, and he eventually gave it to William.
Prince Harry also had his mother in mind when he designed Meghan Markle an engagement ring containing diamonds from Princess Diana’s personal collection. Harry enlisted the help of Cleave and Company to create the sparkler which also features a diamond from Botswana. The African nation is especially dear to Prince Harry who has visited since he was a child and Meghan and Harry have also spent time in Botswana together. Princess Diana would be so proud.
Queen Elizabeth becomes the longest reigning soverign
Adding to her family’s treasure, Princess Diana’s Spencer tiara. It has been worn by other female members of the Spencer family on their wedding days, and was extremely loved by Diana.
The royal’s shamrock brooch has been worn by many in the family including Princess Anne and most recently, Duchess Catherine.
When you’re the longest-reigning monarch, it’s only fair you have enough jewels for every day of the year!
Simply flawless!
