Duchess of Gloucester Wears Historic Tiara for Oman State Banquet
Birgitte, Duchess of Gloucester brought a 90-year-old family jewel back into the spotlight at Windsor Castle on Oct. 20.
She wore the Gloucester Honeysuckle Tiara, set that night with a large pink topaz, for the state banquet honoring Haitham bin Tarik, Sultan of Oman. A state banquet is the palace's formal white-tie dinner, held on the first night of a state visit.
The dinner was hosted by King Charles and Queen Camilla at Windsor Castle, the royal residence west of London, according to Reuters. They were joined by William, Prince of Wales, Catherine, Princess of Wales, Princess Anne and the Duchess of Gloucester, according to Town & Country. The princess had formally greeted the sultan in Windsor earlier that day, according to People.
The tiara is the duchess's signature jewel. It was first given to Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester, in 1935 and passed down through the family.
The piece is made to be changed. Its center embellishment can be swapped for different stones, and the duchess chose a large pink topaz for Tuesday night. That flexibility is part of why the jewel looks different from outing to outing.
She paired it with a cream coat-dress with bejeweled buttons and cuffed sleeves cut to tea length, just below the knee. The pale dress kept the focus on the tiara. It was a quiet styling choice that let the historic piece do the work.
The visit runs from Tuesday, Oct. 20 through Thursday, Oct. 22, after the sultan accepted an invitation from the king, according to the Royal Family. A state visit is an official visit at the king's invitation, with full military and palace ceremony. It is the first official state visit by a Sultan of Oman since March 1982, when Queen Elizabeth II hosted Sultan Qaboos bin Said.
What makes this stand out for royal watchers is the continuity. A jewel given in 1935 still anchors a table that includes the current king and queen, the next in line to the throne and his wife, and a visiting head of state. Ninety years on, it still reads as modern.
