On Saturday evening, the British royals gathered in London for the annual Festival of Remembrance, wearing their best diamonds, pearls, and rubies.
The Royal British Legion’s Festival of Remembrance is an annual concert tribute to the men and women of the armed forces, especially those who have died in the line of duty. The festival has been held annually for more than a century. This year’s performance included special tributes to the life and reign of the late Queen Elizabeth II.
King Charles III led the royal party at this year’s festival. He wore his medals pinned to his jacket, along with a poppy and other related pins. He also wore the Order of Merit around his neck.
Queen Camilla wore a black coat dress with subtle sequin embellishments for the occasion.
Her jewelry for the evening included her diamond Van Cleef & Arpels Magic Alhambra earrings, a diamond disc pendant engraved with the initials of her grandchildren, and a crystal poppy brooch.
The Prince and Princess of Wales were also present for this year’s festival at the Royal Albert Hall.
Kate wore two pieces of jewelry that were loaned to her by the late Queen Elizabeth II: the Bahrain Pearl Drop Earrings and the Japanese Pearl Choker Necklace. She previously wore both pieces for the funeral services of the late Queen and the late Duke of Edinburgh.
The Princess Royal was accompanied by her husband, Vice Admiral Sir Timothy Laurence, for the event.
Princess Anne wore pearls, including pearl and diamond button earrings and a three-stranded pearl necklace. This is the necklace that we’ve seen her wear recently on trips to New York and Uganda. Many have speculated that it might have been previously worn by the late Queen Elizabeth II. For Saturday’s festival, Anne also wore two military badges. One is the Royal Scots badge (also worn at this year’s Braemar Gathering), but the details of the other are too difficult for me to discern. (If you know what badge it is, please let us know in the comments below!)
The Earl and Countess of Wessex were also on hand to watch the performances and tributes at the festival.
Sophie wore a crystal poppy (the same design worn by Camilla, I believe) with gorgeous ruby and diamond cluster pendant earrings.
The late Queen’s cousins were well represented at the festival as well. Here are the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester arriving for the event.
Birgitte always wears lovely jewels, and this was no exception. Her accessories included diamond floral earrings and a gorgeous diamond pin at the center of her collar. She also wore the badge of the Adjutant General’s Corps. (She’s their Deputy Colonel-in-Chief.)
The eldest living grandchild of King George V, the Duke of Kent, was present for the festival, too. He always has a very impressive chest full of medals on these occasions, as he had a two-decade military career of his own.
The Duke’s sister, Princess Alexandra, was also present for the festival. She wore diamonds and pearls, including a lovely pair of pearl cluster earrings and her pearl choker necklace with the geometric diamond clasp.
We’ll have continuing coverage of this weekend’s remembrance events on Monday morning, with a post on the jewels worn at the Cenotaph for the Remembrance Sunday service.
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.