Queen Elizabeth II's Crowns or Tiaras
Her Majesty’s Crowns
Queen Elizabeth II is the longest reigning monarch in England. Her devoted public service for the people of England and commonwealth nations will always be dearly remembered for the years to come. Today, we would like to discuss about the crowns the Queen wore during her life time. To start with, the Queen was known to wear different tiaras when she visited countries to perform her duties. But today, we are going to select a few of the famous crowns or tiaras and explain how they were created.
Many have been interested in those spectacularly-designed crowns because of their unique expressions and pieces of jewelries used in the process.
The first one we would like to present is “The Diamond Diadem” which was made in 1820 by a London-based jewelry firm. It is decorated with 1,333 diamonds, pearls, and four cross pattées that represent the national emblem of the United Kingdom.
The Diamond Diadem was said to be created for King George IV’s coronation in 1821, and it was passed down to the successors according to the Royal Collections Trust.
Queen Elizabeth wore the Diamond Diadem during her travels to and from the State Openings of Parliament.
The Next one is the Vladimir Tiara which features a platinum and gold frame placing emeralds in the center surrounded by diamonds and drop pendant pearls. The intriguing thing about this crown is that emeralds between the intersecting frame circles can be exchanged with pendant pearls. That design was quite remarkable and fashionable at the time of creation. The Vladimir Tiara once belonged to the Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna of Russia who was the paternal first cousin to Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh.
The next lineup is Queen Mary’s Girls of Great Britain and Ireland Tiara which was a wedding gift from Queen Mary to her granddaughter Princess Elizabeth. That tiara was a wedding present to Queen Mary in 1893 before she passed it to Princess Elizabeth in November 1947 to celebrate her granddaughter’s marriage to Prince Philip. The tiara was layered with breathtakingly-beautiful diamonds.
The most famous and discussed crown is the Imperial State Crown. It contains the Black Prince’s Ruby together with other precious jewelries. Indeed, Black Prince’s Ruby is not a ruby at all but a semi-precious stone called Spinel. The crown also includes the Stuart Sapphire, St Edward’s Sapphire, and the Cullinan II Diamond, which is 317.4 carat and regarded as the second largest diamond. According to the history, the crown was crafted by a London-based Garrard & Company in 1937 specially for King George VI’s coronation. It was made from gold and set with 2,868 diamonds, 17 sapphires, 11 emeralds, 269 pearls, and four rubies. The Imperial State Crown is the crown worn by the monarch as they leave Westminster Abbey right after the coronation. Her Majesty wore this crown at her coronation and other formal occasions, including the annual State Opening of Parliament.
Coming up next is the Burmese Ruby Tiara which was also one of the favorite pieces of the Queen during her 70-year reign. It was made with Burmese rubies and served as a wedding gift from the people of Burma (Myanmar). Garrad & Co designed and molded this crown in 1973.
The last one we are going to discuss is Queen Elizabeth II’s Halo Tiara which was designed by Cartier with 16 graduated scrolls, 739 brilliant gemstones, and 149 baton diamonds. It was purchased by the Duke of York who later became King George VI. He gifted this tiara to Lady Elizabeth (Queen Mother), and in turn, she gave it to Princess Elizabeth for her 18th birthday in 1944. This Halo Tiara was also worn by the Princess of Wales Kate Middleton on her wedding day.
To sum up, Queen Elizabeth II peacefully passed away on September 8th of 2022 at Balmoral after her unwavering devotion to her beloved country. During her lying in state at Westminster Abbey, people across England and worldwide can bid farewell to the Queen until this Sunday. Her majesty’s coffin is cloaked in the Royal Standard with the Imperial State Crown, the Sovereign’s orb and scepter on it. The state funeral will be held on September 19th, 2022.
Martin Luterh King Jr. commented once by saying ‘it does not matter how long you live, but how well you do it.’ Queen Elizabeth II lived her life long and well. With all due respect, we say goodbye to the late sovereign. May the Queen Rest In Peace!
References : Royal Collection Trust, FoxNews, The Tower of London, Wikipedia
Images : Royal Collection Trust/ © Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth 2022, BBC, The Court Jeweler