Famous Tiaras of the British Royal Family

Queen Elizabeth II arguably has the most incredible, brilliant jewelry collection in the world. Magnificent tiaras, suits, and crowns, have been acquired by the Royal Family through many, many years and from many different places. Take a look at some of the most famous and recognizable tiara pieces owned by the British Royal Family and learn about the history of them as well.

King George IV State Diadem

The George IV State Diadem, also known simply as the Diamond Diadem, was made by the company Rundell, Bridge and Rundell in 1820 and is considered to be the most symbolic piece of jewelry in Queen Elizabeth’s collection. Its original purpose was made to be worn by King George IV in his coronation ceremony on July 19^th, 1821. This beautiful piece was made out of a whopping 1,333 individual diamonds weighing in at 325 carats. Along with the diamonds, the diadem boasts 169 pearls at the base and the design has symbols of England, Scotland and Ireland. Although this was originally made for a man, it has been worn by Queens and Queen Consorts ever since the coronation ceremony. Queen Victoria, for example, wore the Diamond Diadem for her coronation in 1838. So did Queen Elizabeth II for her coronation in 1953.

Delhi Durbar Tiara

This gigantic piece was made by Garrard for Queen Mary for the 1911 Delhi Durbar. The 1911 Delhi Durbar was an official ceremony which made King George V and Queen Mary the Emperor and Empress of India. King George V had asked Garrard to make this tiara after learning the original tiara presented to them at the Durbar could not leave the country. Although the history of this tiara is not all that clear, it is said to be made out of fragments and jewels of Queen Mary’s Diamond Loop Tiara. It was originally made with 10 cabochon emeralds but they were removed in 1922 and were repurposed for Queen Elizabeth II’s Grand Duchess Vladimir Tiara still in use today.

In 1947, Queen Mary loaned the tiara to Queen Elizabeth (later the Queen Mother) for her trip to South Africa in 1946 and it remained in Queen Elizabeth’s possession until her death in 2002 when it was then passed on to Queen Elizabeth II. In 2005, the Queen loaned it to Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall at her first tiara event at Buckingham Palace held for the King and Queen of Norway.

The Grand Duchess Vladimir Tiara

This majestic piece was first owned by the Grand Duchess of Vladimir, aunt of Tsar Nicholas II. It was made by the Russian court jeweler Bolin, who produced the tiara with 15 intertwined diamond circles all strung together with hanging baroque pearls. When the Duchess had to flee St. Petersburg in the rise of the revolution, she kept this tiara and other beautiful pieces from her collection hidden away in a vault at the Vladimir Palace. The piece was kept hidden until a family friend smuggled the jewels out of Russia and returned them to the Duchess who then split up all her pieces between her four children.

The tiara was obtained by the Duchess’s daughter, Princess Nicholas of Greece who ended up selling the piece to Queen Mary in 1921. Once Queen Mary owned the tiara, she made few repairs and changes to enhance the look of it and to fix any imperfections. One of the most significant changes she made was replacing the baroque hanging pearls with 15 Cambridge cabochon emeralds originally topping the Delhi Durbar Tiara. Since the tiara has been passed down to Queen Elizabeth II, the Queen often wears it with the dangling pearls, emeralds, or with no pieces at all. It is possible that because of the versatility of this tiara, that it has become one of the Queen’s most favorite pieces.

Burmese Ruby Tiara

In 1973, Queen Elizabeth II commissioned the royal jeweler, Garrard, to design a tiara using jewels already in her private collection. The tiara was made of 96 rubies set in gold, and diamonds, set in silver. The rubies were a wedding present to the Queen from the Burmese people and, according to Burmese beliefs, give the wearer protection from evil and illness. The diamonds used were also a wedding present by the Nizam of Hyderabab and Berar.

Since the commission of the tiara, the Queen has worn it many times at events and has done little to no changes to it.

Girls of Great Britain and Ireland Tiara

This tiara was presented to Queen Mary as a wedding gift in 1893 by a committee organized by Lady Eve Graville of the ‘Girls of Great Britain and Ireland’ committee. It was purchased by the committee from Garrard Jewelers and boasts a beautiful design of festoons and scrolls with diamond spikes accented with nine large pearls at the top. After Queen Mary received the gift, she quickly took off the large pearls and replaced them with smaller, more versatile, diamonds. The pearls were later reused in the Cambridge Lover’s Knot Tiara. The original tiara also had a bandeau base of round diamonds which can be worn or removed according to the wearer’s choosing.

In 1947, Queen Mary gave this tiara to Princess Elizabeth as a wedding gift to Prince Philip. Since then, Princess Elizabeth (later Queen Elizabeth II) has worn this tiara many times with and without the base and it is widely considered that this tiara is the Queen’s most favorite. One can understand why; the sentimental value, as well as the beautiful, simplistic and un-overbearing design makes this my favorite tiara also.

Russian Kokoshnik Tiara

In 1888, the grand Russian Kokoshnik Tiara was presented to Princess Alexandra, the Princess of Wales by the ‘Ladies of Society’ organized by Lady Salisbury. The name of the tiara, “Kokoshnik”, comes from the Russian name for a traditional head-dress worn by women and girls in the 16^th-19^th centuries. Princess Alexandra requested Garrard Jewelers to fashion a tiara in the Kokoshnik style after seeing a similarly designed piece that belonged to her sister Marie Feodorovna, Empress of Russia.

The tiara, which also can be worn as a necklace, is made out of a whopping 488 brilliant cut diamonds weighing in at 3.25 carats each, set in 61 platinum bars. Princess Alexandra wore this tiara often and highly praised it saying, “The presents are quite magnificent. The Ladies of Society gave a lovely diamond spiked tiara”. In 1957, the tiara was passed down to Queen Elizabeth II and is still in use by the British Royal Family today.

Cambridge Lovers Knot Tiara

In 1914, Queen Mary commissioned royal jewelers to design the iconic Cambridge Lovers Knot Tiara. Queen Mary got the initial idea of the design after seeing a similar tiara owned by Princess Augusta of Hesse, the Duchess of Cambridge (hence the name). The tiara design is made of 19 overlapping arches of pure diamonds with lover’s knots on the top. From the arches hang 19 perfect pearls from Queen Mary’s personal collection. Many of the pearls came from the original ‘Girls of Great Britain and Ireland Tiara’ and the rest from various pieces from Queen Mary’s jewelry box.

After Queen Mary’s death in 1953, the tiara was passed on to Queen Elizabeth II who was not a massive fan of the piece and so the tiara was not seen as often. It wasn’t until the Queen presented this tiara to Diana, Princess of Wales as a wedding present that it came into use again. In 1981, Queen Elizabeth II loaned this tiara to her upon her marriage to her son, Prince Charles of Wales and since then, the tiara had quickly become an iconic piece associated with Princess Diana as she wore it often to state events and other important occasions with the Royal Family. Upon Princess Diana’s divorce from Prince Charles in 1996, the tiara was returned back to the Queen and is now in storage.