The Grandest Royal Jewelry In History

Jul 25, 2020 by apost team

For the British royals, jewelry is not just an accessory. Here, we take a closer look at some of the engagement rings and tiaras that make up the royal collection. Get your shades ready, it's about to get bright in here.

According to Business Insider, Prince Harry had Meghan Markle's engagement ring made by Cleave & Company using an ethically-sourced center stone from Botswana, where he and Meghan took their first trip together.

The center stone is flanked by two round diamonds from a brooch that belonged to her late mother-in-law, Princess Diana.

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In 2010, Prince William proposed to Kate Middleton with the same engagement ring Prince Charles gave to the late Princess Diana. According to The Diamond Store Magazine, when Kate received the ring, it was slightly too big for her. It kept sliding and turning around on her finger, so the Crown Jeweller, G. Collins and Sons, were asked to resize it from the size I to H.

They did this by placing small platinum beads inside the ring’s band. The ring consists of a 12-carat oval blue sapphire, cut into facets, and surrounded by 14 solitaire diamonds. The setting is made from 18K white gold.

At a banquet in Papua New Guinea, Queen Elizabeth II was seen wearing the Girls of Great Britain and Ireland Tiara together with an emerald necklace and earrings known as the Cambridge and Delhi Durbar Parure.

This headpiece is most frequently worn by the monarch, it's even featured in her portrait on the British currency. On the history of the tiara, The Daily Express reported that it was a wedding gift from her grandmother, Queen Mary, and the first she owned herself. The tiara was originally a wedding gift for Mary when she married the Duke of York, who later became George V, in 1893.

Zara Phillips wore Princess Andrew's Meander Tiara for her wedding to Mike Tindall at Canongate Kirk on July 30,  2011, in Edinburgh, Scotland.

This tiara was a wedding gift to her grandmother, the Queen, from her mother-in-law, Princess Alice of Greece and Denmark. The Queen gave it to her daughter Princess Anne in 1972, who wore the tiara in her engagement photos with Captain Mark Phillips, as per The Court Jeweller.

Also known as the Boucheron Honeycomb Tiara, Harper's Bazaar writes that The Greville Tiara was made by Boucheron for Dame Margaret Helen Greville in 1920. Greville left the tiara to the Queen Mother when she died in 1942, and upon the death of the Queen Mother in 2002, the Queen inherited the headpiece.

It is now one of three tiaras on long-term loan to Camilla. The Duchess of Cornwall enjoys wearing this bling and has brought it out for several formal occasions, including a 2013 event in Sri Lanka.

Her Majesty loaned the Queen Mary Fringe Tiara to her granddaughter, Princess Beatrice of York, for her intimate wedding to Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi. Queen Elizabeth II and Princess Anne had worn the piece themselves on their wedding days.

According to Town & Country, many believe that the tiara was chosen for its sentimental significance and its all-diamond design, which complemented the bride's Norman Hartnell gown also on loan from the Queen. This marked the first time a modern royal bride has donned a tiara worn by another ancestral royal (let alone two) for her wedding day. Given Beatrice and Edoardo's postponement of a larger-scale celebration due to the pandemic, the Queen likely chose this piece to signify the royal family's history, as well as solidarity, strength, and endurance.

Straying from tradition, Princess Diana wore a tiara from her own family's collection for her wedding to Prince Charles in 1981, instead of borrowing one from the Queen, as noted by Harper's Bazaar. The tiara, which was made by Garrard in the 1930s, was worn by Diana subsequent special occasions and most recently worn by her niece, Celia McCorquadale, for her wedding earlier this year.

True to its name, Queen Mary originally owned this bandeau and bequeathed it to Queen Elizabeth II on her death. Meghan Markle wore this beautiful piece when she got married to Prince Harry in 2018 as seen here. 

Princess Eugenie was also loaned a fabulous piece from the Queen for her wedding day — this pretty emerald tiara that complemented her simple, backless wedding dress. This piece is also from the Greville collection of jewels, as reported by Vogue Australia.

Princess Margaret had the pleasure of wearing this delicate band while on tour in Zanzibar in 1956. Princess Anne also wore the piece to an event in 1970 in New Zealand.

But its most iconic wearer has to be Kate Middleton, who wore the Halo Tiara on that spectacular day in 2011 when she became Prince William's wife, wrote Glamour. This gorgeous piece was made in 1936 and owned by the Queen Mother, but she gave it to Queen Elizabeth II for her 18th birthday. We'd like to think Princess Charlotte will wear it at her own wedding in the decades to come.

Which of these pieces do you find the most epic? Let us know in the comments and be sure to pass this along to all the jewelry lovers in your life.