The Royal Family brought the glamour to Windsor Castle on Wednesday, December 3 as they welcomed Germany’s president, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, and first lady Elke Büdenbender for an official state visit. While Princess Kate sent jaws dropping in Queen Victoria’s diamond-and-ruby circlet tiara, Queen Camilla also wore a dazzling diamond headpiece steeped in royal history for their formal state banquet.
In mid-November, the Girls of Great Britain and Ireland Tiara—a favorite of the late Queen Elizabeth—was removed from the Edwardians: Age of Elegance exhibition at The King’s Gallery in London. While many fans assumed that it was taken from display for Queen Camilla to wear at the Diplomatic Corps reception on November 18, The Queen opted for a surprising choice instead, wearing the same emerald kokoshnik tiara Princess Eugenie chose for her 2018 wedding.
The “Girls” tiara wasn’t returned to the palace exhibition before its November 23 closing, leaving royal fans to wonder if it was being repaired or cleaned ahead of the German state visit this month. Fortunately, Queen Camilla answered that question on Wednesday, wearing the dazzling diamond tiara as she joined King Charles and their German guests.
Queen Mary received the Girls of Great Britain and Ireland tiara as a wedding gift in 1893, with the funds for the dazzling diamond piece having been raised by a committee of young women across the United Kingdom and Ireland—hence its name. It was then passed down to Queen Elizabeth as a wedding gift from her grandmother, Mary, in 1947.
For Wednesday’s state banquet, Queen Camilla kept the family tradition alive in the tiara, pairing it with a long-sleeved teal lace gown by one of her favorite designers, Fiona Clare. She finished off the look with dramatic diamond earrings and a massive emerald-and-diamond necklace from the royal vaults.
As for the Princess of Wales’s tiara surprise, her diamond headpiece dates back to the 1800s as well and was designed for Queen Victoria by her German-born husband, Prince Albert.
