Another day for the royals, another gala. Earlier this week, Windsor Castle welcomed hundreds of diplomats through its doors for the annual Diplomatic Corps reception.
This is the first festive event in the Royal Family’s calendar, which is curated by the Marshal of the Diplomatic Corps, Alistair Harrison, and welcomes 500 top emissaries, all dressed in national dress or white tie.
It’s well-known that nobody does pomp and splendour like the royal family, and that was in evidence here. As King Charles III, Prince William and Queen Camilla greeted the arrivals, they were all dressed in their finest regalia.
Camilla herself wore a cream dress, but of particular interest, though, was her headwear. The Queen is no stranger to a tiara, but this one – the Greville Emerald Kokoshnik Tiara – holds special significance.
Made up of brilliant and rose-cut diamonds set in platinum and adorned with emeralds, the tiara was created in 1919 by French luxury jewellery house Boucheron. It was owned by society figure Margaret Greville, before it passed into the hands of the Queen Mother, then the late Queen Elizabeth II.
However, it’s probably best known for being the tiara worn by Princess Eugenie on her wedding day to husband Jack Brooksbank.
That was all the way back in 2018, but her decision to wear the tiara could be a show of support for Eugenie’s branch of the family. The daughter of the former Prince Andrew, Eugenie and her sister, Beatrice, have no doubt been struggling with the barrage of negative press around their father in recent weeks.
Last month, it was announced that Andrew would give up all his royal titles, including that of ‘Prince’, and be known solely as Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor. It comes after a turbulent few years in which Andrew has repeatedly struggled with revelations linking him to the disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein. Andrew has denied all wrongdoing.
In addition to the tiara, the Queen finished off her outfit with earrings that date back to the earliest days of her marriage to Charles in 2005, as well as the Royal Family Order of King Charles: a portrait of the current sovereign gifted to female members of the royal family for their service to the crown.
The King’s portrait, which was designed by himself and debuted by Camilla at a 2024 state banquet, stood out, as did her signature diamond and ruby serpent necklace, which is thought to be a family heirloom.
