British Royal Jewels—and Military Badges—at the Festival of Remembrance in London

King Charles III and Queen Camilla led the royal party at this year’s Royal British Legion Festival of Remembrance. They were joined by the Prince and Princess of Wales, the Princess Royal and Sir Timothy Laurence, the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh, and the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester.

Before the festival began, King Charles and Queen Camilla unveiled new statues of the late Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip at the Royal Albert Hall. Above is a photograph of the statue of the late Queen. You’ll note that the artist decided to depict her wearing the Vladimir Tiara.

For this year’s Festival of Remembrance, Queen Camilla wore diamond jewelry pieces that have been in her personal collection for many years. She has worn this pair of antique diamond floral earrings for many important occasions in her life, including the blessing ceremony following her marriage to King Charles in April 2005. She also wore her diamond serpent necklace, which she’s had in her collection for more than 20 years.

The Princess of Wales sparkled in pearls and diamonds, including both heirloom royal pieces and a new military badge.

Kate wore the three-stranded pearl necklace given to her by the late Queen Elizabeth II, which she debuted in the days following the monarch’s passing in September 2022. She also wore the Bahrain Pearl Drop Earrings, made from pearls given to Elizabeth II as a wedding present in 1947. (She wore the same earrings at this event in 2022 as well.) And she secured her poppy with the diamond badge of the 1st Queen’s Dragoon Guards. Kate was named Colonel-in-Chief of the regiment by her father-in-law, King Charles III, on August 11.

Also wearing sentimental pearls was the Princess Royal, who added a lovely black-and-white embroidered wrap to her ensemble.

She wore the triple strand of pearls that many—myself included—believe belonged to her mother, the late Queen Elizabeth II. This is, I believe, the three-stranded pearl necklace commissioned by Elizabeth II in her accession year, 1952, using existing pearls from the family collection. They were Elizabeth’s everyday pearls, and Anne has been wearing the necklace on various occasions since her mother’s passing. A reception held on the eve of the coronation allowed us to see the clasp of the necklace, which is a visual match to the 1952 pearls. She wore the necklace, paired with the same diamond and pearl button earrings, for last year’s Festival of Remembrance as well.

The Duchess of Edinburgh was elegant in a long black dress with sheer sleeves for the occasion.

She wore her diamond and golden pearl drop earrings, plus a trio of pins. The first is a poppy brooch; the second two are badges from two military corps: Queen Alexandra’s Royal Army Nursing Corps and the Royal Corps of Army Music. Sophie serves as Colonel-in-Chief of both.

As always, the Duchess of Gloucester wore impeccably elegant jewelry for the festival, including pieces set with diamonds and rubies.

She wore diamond and ruby cluster earrings, as well as a black pearl necklace with a gorgeous, intriguing ruby and diamond pendant. To her lapel, Birgitte pinned the badge of Adjutant General’s Corps. She was Deputy Colonel-in-Chief of the corps for three decades until her promotion to Colonel-in-Chief in August.