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Sparkling Royal Jewels From Around the World

Princess Louise’s Forget-Me-Not Tiara

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Princess Louise, Princess Royal and Duchess of Fife, ca. 1905 [1]
It’s time once more to peek into the jewel collection of our magpie of the month, everybody! I’ve saved one of the most intriguing pieces from Princess Louise’s jewels for last: her diamond floral tiara, composed of several diamond elements — and possibly seen in recent years on a popular television drama.
The tiara, seen above, is actually composed of multiple pieces of jewelry cobbled together. It includes a diamond floral spray and a series of floral brooches, including daisies and forget-me-nots. The pieces were all from among Louise’s wedding gifts, though there are conflicting reports about the identity of the giver. Ursula identifies two parties who gave the princess diamond floral garlands and/or floral brooches: Lord Farquhar, the best man at the wedding, and the Sassoon family. She suggests that the tiara may be composed of parts from both gifts [2].
Louise was photographed in the tiara in 1905, standing alongside her mother, Queen Alexandra, and her sister, Princess Victoria. It’s the best portrait that exists of Louise wearing the tiara, and to my knowledge, she wasn’t pictured in the tiara again after that occasion. Exactly what happened to the tiara is something of a mystery — the pieces were likely inherited by one of her daughters, Alexandra or Maud; some of the jewels that they received from their mother were later sold at auction.

In 2012, a new theory emerged about this tiara’s fate. That year, Lady Mary Crawley, one of the main characters in Downton Abbey, the famous ITV period drama, wore a diamond floral spray tiara in her wedding on the show. That tiara was borrowed by the production company from Bentley & Skinner, a London-based firm that acquires and sells antique jewels. They describe Lady Mary’s wedding tiara as an “important Georgian diamond tiara, the tiara in the form of a garland spray of leaves and floral clusters, pave-set throughout with old-cut diamonds, weighing an estimated total of 45 carats, cutdown collet-set in silver to a yellow gold mount, convertible to two brooches, gross weight 75.5 grams on frame, circa 1800” [3].

The tiara currently owned by Bentley & Skinner is not linked by the firm to the diamond spray worn by Princess Louise. However, an article in the Daily Mail claims that the two are indeed the same piece. They call it the “myrtle tiara” and note that it was a gift from the Sassoons to the princess; they also note that it can be dismantled and worn as a set of brooches, “which Princess Louise often did” [4]. The Mail article doesn’t give sources for the information, though as the piece involves its writer, Petronella Wyatt, trying on the tiara under the watchful gaze of a public relations rep from Bentley & Skinner, it seems plausible that they may have shared the information with the paper.

Other jewel watchers aren’t sure about the connection; posters at the Royal Jewels of the World forum have examined the two pieces and decided that there are significant differences between the two [5]. I think it’s also plausible, though, that as Louise received diamond floral sprays from two different guests at her wedding, she may be wearing one spray (possibly the one given to her by Farquhar) in the 1905 photo, while the second, slightly different piece is now owned by Bentley & Skinner (and available for you to rent out for a mere £1,750 a day — plus a  £126,000 deposit! [6]). It’s tough to say for certain, but I am sort of glad that a piece that was perhaps formerly worn by royalty is still accessible to the public today — even if it’s only on television on Sunday evenings.

NOTES, PHOTO CREDITS, AND LINKS
1. Cropped version of a photograph available via Wikimedia Commons; source here.
2. See more, including additional photos, at Ursula’s website.
3. The Bentley & Skinner page on the tiara, including a set of photos, can be seen here.
4. You can read the full piece on the tiara from the Mail on their website.
5. Here’s the relevant thread from the message board.
6. Here are the details, again from the Mail.

Jewel History: Wedding Gifts Fill Big Hall at Palace (1922)

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Viscount Lascelles and Princess Mary on their wedding day in 1922 [1]
“Wedding Gifts Fill Big Hall at Palace”
(originally appeared in the Washington Post, 25 Feb 1922)
The spacious picture gallery in Buckingham Palace, which is as large as the grand ballroom of any New York hotel, today presented a dazzling spectacle to a small party of invited guests who viewed a portion of the magnificent wedding presents that have been sent to Princess Mary and Viscount Lascelles, who are to be married next week. 
The prewedding exhibition of the gifts had been planned to take place at St. James’s Palace, where they were received, until the death of Lady Feodora Gleichen there Wednesday morning, which necessitated the change.
Cases Blaze with Gems
Only the smaller and more portable presents have been transferred to Buckingham Palace, but they turned the great gallery into a hall of glittering splendor. A half hour was the time limit for the visitors and this afforded them time for only a casual inspection of the wonderful display. In glass cases blazed diamonds, sapphires, and emeralds, adn there were pearls, gold and silver articles, and priceless antiques, each distinctive in design and of studied elegance.
There was the three-fold gift of King George — a tiara of diamonds and sapphires and a necklace and bracelet studded with similar stones. The monarch’s gift to his daughter occupied the central position of honor in the hall.
Lord Lascelles and Princess Mary [2]
Brooch Queen’s Gift
Then there was to be seen a brooch given by Queen Mary — one great sapphire encircled by diamonds [3]. With these and the other gems on display the princess could go through an entire court season without having to wear twice any bit of jewelry.
Another case held the gift of Viscount Lascelles to his bride-to-be — a corsage of sapphires and diamonds, from which one massive stone shone forth from the field of lesser brilliants. A cluster of diamonds is suspended from the corsage. It contains two large pearls. There also was a riviere, or necklace, of diamonds, and a diamond pendant containing two large pearl drops. This gorgeous display of jewels will be worn by Princess Mary at the wedding.
Nearby was Princess Mary’s gift to Viscount Lascelles. This consisted of a pair of antique souffle dishes and a platinum and gold watch chain set with pearls.
Wales Gives Bracelet
The Prince of Wales’s gift to his sister is a diamond and sapphire bracelet. Dowager Queen Alexandra has given the princess a marvelous corsage of pearls, with emerald drops, and a beautiful necklace containing six rows of stones.
Princess Mary’s aunts, the Princess Royal, Princess Victoria, and the Queen of Norway, combined in their present, sending the princess a long diamond lace brooch. The Duke of York and Princes Henry and George have given their sister a sapphire and diamond ring, unique in style and setting. From the bridegroom’s parents has come a large diamond brooch.
A large ring came from Queen Victoria of Spain. Queen Amelia has given the bride-elect a gold bracelet containing one huge ruby and one pearl, with a circle of diamonds as a clasp.
Princess Mary [4]
Clock from Duke of Connaught
The great-aunts of the princess and the Duke of Connaught have presented her with an ebony and gold antique clock. Another clock, perhaps the most remarkable of the lot, has been sent by Prince and Princess Christopher of Greece. It is a carriage clock with a gold sunray face, with two silver and diamond stars moving around to indicate the hours and minutes.
Conspicuous among the other presents were a miscellany of rich ropes of pearls, jeweled fans, and huge silver vessels from the members of the British cabinet and others from the diplomatic corps; a handsome negligee [5] with a center of emeralds and a coronet of precious stones from the navy; a silver dressing table set from the army; a mink coat and muff from the twelve city companies; a diamond bracelet “from the men and women of the stage”; a negligee of rubies, pearls, turquoises, and diamonds shaped after the fashion of an eastern temple bell from Viceroy Reading of India and the Countess Reading; a splendid sable coat from twenty-eight friends; two silver cake dishes from Mrs. Whitelaw Reid, widow of the former ambassador to the Court of St. James; and an infinite variety of other gifts, consisting of furniture and wearing apparel.
NOTES, PHOTO CREDITS, AND LINKS
1. Cropped version of a picture postcard available via Wikimedia Commons; source here.
2. Image available via Wikimedia Commons; source here.
3. Some have speculated that this was one of the Albert brooches — one of five copies of Queen Victoria’s sapphire and diamond brooch given to each of Albert and Victoria’s daughters. To my knowledge, there’s never been confirmation that this was indeed one of those brooches. See Suzy Menkes for more on the copies of the Albert brooch.
4. Image available via Wikimedia Commons; source here.
5. A necklace is generally referred to as a “negligee” when it includes tassels or pendant drops of irregular length; the Delhi Durbar necklace is a good example. These were especially popular during the reign of Mary’s grandfather, Edward VII.

The Imperial Order of the Crown of India

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Badge of the Imperial Order of the Crown of India [1]
If you look at portraits of British royal women from the late-nineteenth and early-twentieth centuries, you’ll often see them wearing an unfamiliar badge amid the royal family orders pinned to their left shoulders. These badges, which were worn suspended from light blue ribbons, belonged to an order of chivalry that was once widely bestowed but has since become all but extinct: the Imperial Order of the Crown of India.
Queen Victoria, ca. 1882 [2]
The order was begun to celebrate the elevation of Queen Victoria to her newest title, Empress of India, in 1876. From the start, this was an order of chivalry that was awarded exclusively to women — no men were ever admitted to its ranks (although four served as its sovereign). The badge of the order, which was set with diamonds, turquoises, and pearls, included three intertwined initials: VRI, which stood for Victoria Regina Imperatrix (in English, that’s Victoria Queen-Empress). You can see the initials in the illustration of the badge above; you can also see Queen Victoria wearing the insignia of the order (partially obscured under another ribbon on her left shoulder) in the portrait at left.
When Queen Victoria instituted the order on January 1, 1878, the rules of the order were established in the London Gazette [3]. The role of the sovereign of the order was assigned to the reigning monarch of the United Kingdom (Victoria and her heirs, both male and female). She also ensured that the monarch could both invest and remove members of the order as he or she saw fit. Women who could be invested as companions of the order needed to belong to one of three categories. British princesses (who had reached the age of eighteen) were eligible. So were the wives and female relatives of Indian princes (and Indian princesses in their own right, too). The third group recognized the wives and female relatives of high-ranking British colonial officials — specifically, the spouses and relatives of the Viceroy (or the Governor-General), the Governor of Madras, the Governor of Bombay, and the Secretary of State of India. 
Thirty-six women were listed as companions of the order when it was originally established. The list of companions was also published in the London Gazette, and it included women who fit into all three of the designated categories. Ten British princesses were among the original members of the order, including all five of her daughters (plus Princess Louise’s mother-in-law, the Duchess of Argyll), two of her daughters-in-law (the Princess of Wales and the Duchess of Edinburgh), and her Cambridge aunt and cousins (including the Duchess of Teck, mother of the future Queen Mary).
Nawab Shahjihan Begum
of Bhopal, ca. 1872 [4]

Eight royal Indian women were also among the original membership of the order. Maharani Bamba, something of a real-life Cinderella, was the wife of the last Maharaja of Lahore. Nawab Shahjihan Begum was the ruler of Bhopal in her own right; her elderly grandmother, Nawab Kudsia Begum, was also made a companion. Maharani Vani Vilasa Sannidhana Kempananja Ammani Avaru was the wife of one Maharaja of Mysore and the mother (and regent) of another. Maharini Jamnabai Sahib Gaekwad, the widow of the Maharaja of Baroda, was also the adopted mother of a subsequent Baroda ruler. Sahebzadi Dialwar unisa Begum Saheba was the grandmother of the Nizam of Hyderabad. Vijaya Mohenu Mukta Boyi was the daughter of the last Raja of Tanjore, and some recognized her as her father’s successor. Maharani Swarnamoyee of Cossimbazar was renowned for her charity work.

Seventeen additional women, all related to the past and present colonial officials in India, were also recognized as original companions of the order. The Dowager Countess of Elgin, Lady Mayo, Lady Susan Bourke, Lady Jane Baring, Lady Lytton, Lady Lawrence, and Lady Strachey were all wives, widows, or daughters of Viceroys and Governors-General of India. Lady Mary Temple-Nugent-Brydges-Chandos-Grenville, Lady Hobart, Lady Napier, and Lady Denison were all wives or daughters of Governors of Madras. Lady Frere and Lady Temple were wives of Governors of Bombay. Viscountess Halifax’s husband was in charge of the British East India Company. Lady Salisbury, Lady Ripon, and Lady Northcote were wives of Secretaries of State and (Under-Secretaries of State) of India.

Over the next seventy years, many more British princesses, Indian royals, and relatives of colonial officials were added to the order’s ranks. In 1947, when British colonial control of India ended, the order was essentially suspended; as you can imagine, there’s been no need to add new companions to an imperial order of chivalry based in a country that has since gained its independence.

Today, there is exactly one living person who was invested as a member of the order during its tenure: Queen Elizabeth II, who was made a companion on June 12, 1947. Her sister, Princess Margaret, was made a companion of the order on the same day, even though she was only sixteen. (You can see Margaret wearing the insignia of the order in this portrait; it is placed on her left shoulder, above her family orders.) Both of the princesses were appointed to the order during the celebrations of the official birthday of their father, King George VI [5]. India gained independence from Britain two months later, on August 15, 1947.

NOTES, PHOTO CREDITS, AND LINKS
1. Cropped version of an image available via Wikimedia Commons; source here.
2. Photograph available via Wikimedia Commons; source here.
3. The relevant pages from the London Gazette are available here.
4. Cropped version of photograph available via Wikimedia Commons; source here.
5. See the London Gazette announcement here.