Kate Middleton isn’t yet the queen of England, however, at a state dinner hosted by German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, she debuted the most regal crown in the entire Windsor jewelry box.
The Princess of Wales is the fifth royal to wear the tiara, which was made for Queen Victoria in 1853. The piece is known as the Oriental Circlet, and was a favorite of Queen Elizabeth, mother of Queen Elizabeth II. Since 2005, it has been kept in the royal jewelry box—that is, until earlier this week, when Kate wore it with an equally regal Jenny Packham dress and chandelier-shaped earrings that belonged to Elizabeth II, as well as the brooch of the Order of Charles III.
Kate’s Jenny Packham gown was custom-made and studded with sequins, and had a semi-transparent layer incorporated that gave it an absolutely ethereal look.
Prince Albert commissioned the Oriental Circlet tiara for Queen Victoria from Garrard, the Crown jeweler at the time. Apparently, the consort had very good taste in jewelry, and had a lot to do with the design. He chose opals—one of his favorite stones—which he complemented with no fewer than 2,600 diamonds. Per Town & Country, in her will, Queen Victoria stipulated that the tiara could only be worn by queens and future queens.
Queen Victoria’s daughter-in-law, Princess Alexandra, swapped the opals for rubies in 1902 because she said opals brought bad luck.
While the Queen Mother was very fond of this Queen Victoria tiara and wore it with relative assiduity, her daughter only wore it once in public, on an official trip to Malta in November 2005. Since then, it has been carefully stored for 20 years. Thanks to Kate Middleton, however, the Oriental Circlet is getting time in the spotlight once again.
