Queen Camilla paired her iconic coronation dress with a magnificent tiara she’s never worn before in honour of a major royal milestone.
The Queen Consort is known for favouring only a few of the late Queen Elizabeth’s tiaras for major royal occasions but she’s just brought out another for the very first time for the first State Opening of Parliament of King Charles’ reign. This is a momentous milestone for the royal couple, who travelled from Buckingham Palace to the House of Lords in a carriage. This wasn’t the only thing that might have brought King Charles and Queen Camilla’s coronation day to mind as Her Majesty re-wore her iconic coronation gown with none other than the Diamond Diadem, also known as the King George IV State Diadem.
It’s not hard to see why, as this spectacular piece is set with 1,333 diamonds, as revealed by the Royal Collection Trust. It’s silver and gold-lined with pearls, four crosses-pattée and the front cross features a pale yellow brilliant-cut diamond. Eagle-eyed jewellery fans might spot the national emblems of England, Scotland and Ireland around the tiara in the form of roses, thistles and shamrocks. This piece could be considered one of the most significant of Queen Elizabeth’s tiaras as it featured on coins, banknotes and stamps throughout her reign.
It also has a long association with the State Opening of Parliament which possibly inspired the choice for Queen Camilla to make her Diamond Diadem debut here. The magnificent tiara has been worn by Queens over the years from Queen Adelaide in the 19th century and Queen Elizabeth wore it for the first time to her first State Opening Parliament as Queen in 1952.
From then on she continued to wear it to State Openings and so Queen Camilla wearing it on 7th November was a lovely way to not only honour her mother-in-law, but also more specifically the tradition she started. The floral emblems also worked beautifully with Queen Camilla’s coronation gown by Bruce Oldfield which made its triumphant return for this occasion.
Though it might not look like it at first glance, Queen Camilla’s coronation outfit is a floral masterpiece. All over the length of this gorgeous gown are tiny embroidered wildflowers alongside thistles, roses and shamrocks as well as daffodils as the emblem for Wales which feature on the cuffs and shoulders.
The flowers on the rest of the dress include daisy chains, scarlet pimpernel and forget-me-nots and The Telegraph previously revealed that the embroidery was specifically chosen to reflect King Charles and Queen Camilla’s love of the British countryside and love of nature. This ties in wonderfully with the tiara and the dress also features lots of other personal touches, including embroidered dogs representing her pets Bluebell and Beth and the names of Queen Camilla’s children and grandchildren.
This time at the State Opening of Parliament given it’s such a formal and traditional occasion, Queen Camilla went all out with the rest of her jewellery too. Instead of wearing her day-to-day items like her £4,500 Van Cleef & Arpels Alhambra bracelet, she wore all diamond jewellery from her necklace to her earrings and her bracelet.
Queen Camilla sat on the throne beside King Charles as he delivered the King’s Speech which outlines the government’s agenda for the coming session of parliament including legislative plans. Although King Charles accompanied Queen Elizabeth to it in the past this is his first time opening parliament as monarch and the first time Queen Camilla’s attended as Queen.
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