Thanks to Kate Middleton, the Strathmore Rose Tiara is back in the limelight.
When the Princess of Wales wore the tiara to a State Banquet in November, it came to light again—a remarkable item with a distinctive floral design that had been hidden away in the royal vaults for almost a century.
Now that I’m interested in the item again, it would be interesting to investigate the tiara further! Let’s examine its construction and background in more detail.
This exquisite tiara was made in England during the 1800s and has a diamond bandeau with five roses and diamond sprays.
Initially, each rose can be taken off and worn as a brooch on its own. Might we see the Princess wear a rose brooch at a future engagement if the tiara isn’t too delicate to take apart?
Secondly, you can change the center diamonds in each flower to sapphires to create a whole other style. One day, I think Kate will wear the sapphire tiara to go with her engagement ring and other sapphire jewelry.
The Strathmore Rose Tiara can be worn on the forehead, as Kate did when she wore it over her hair. This appearance is linked to the ‘flapper’ look, which gained immense popularity in the 1920s. This was the way the late Queen Mother wore hers, following the fashion of the day, as you can see here.
History of the Strathmore Rose Tiara
The future Queen Mother, Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, received the Strathmore Rose Tiara as a wedding present in 1923 from her parents, the Earl and Countess of Strathmore and Kinghorne. (Hence, Strathmore, the name!)
Lady Elizabeth was then betrothed to Prince Albert, the Duke of York, who would go on to become King George VI. The tiara is an antique that was made in the nineteenth century and was acquired from the London dealer Catchpole and Williams.
In the early years of her marriage to the Duke of York, in the 1930s, Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon (after known as the Queen Mother) wore the tiara in a number of official photos.
We saw the tiara on Catherine, Princess of Wales, at the State Banquet held at Buckingham Palace in 2023, nearly a century after it was first worn. The President of South Korea was in town.
Queen Elizabeth II and other Royal Family members are not known to have worn this tiara in public. Before making a recent appearance, it seems to have been sitting in the royal collection unused for a long time.
Its most recent resurgence on the Princess of Wales adds another exciting chapter to its legendary history.
Since it was worn for the first time in nearly a century at the South Korea State Banquet, the Strathmore Rose Tiara has garnered new attention thanks to the Princess of Wales’s decision to wear it.
The Princess has only worn the tiara once thus far.
The selection of the Strathmore Rose Tiara by the Princess of Wales was met with great enthusiasm from royal fans. This exquisite tiara frequently tops the list in social media polls predicting which royal headpiece aficionados are most eager to see the Princess wear! Royal fans and Kate watchers alike were thrilled to see her dazzle in the piece.
I hope we see the Princess wear the floral headpiece again in the future.
Also, now that Kate has added the Strathmore Rose Tiara to her jewelry repertoire, I wonder if we’ll see her wear the individual flowers as brooches anytime soon? Possibly!
