My Top 15 Tiaras: #3: Cartier Pearl Drop Tiara

 

This tiara was made by Cartier Paris as a wedding gift for Princess Charlotte, mother of Prince Rainier, grandmother of Prince Albert. It was a gift from her husband, Count Pierre de Polignac (Prince Pierre of Monaco, Duke of Valentinois, as he became).

(Yes, that is another tiara around her neck)

The tiara is made of platinum and white gold, and features diamond scroll work with hanging pear-shaped pearl drops, which is why I'm choosing to call it the Cartier Pearl Drop Tiara.There are no pictures (well, as far as I know, at least) of Princess Charlotte wearing this piece. There are also no pictures of Princess Grace wearing it, so we jump to Caroline. Because Grace never wore the tiara publicly, many have assumed it passed directly to Caroline. Princess Charlotte was said to not have approved of Grace, so perhaps she did not leave her jewels to her daughter-in-law. I have no idea if Charlotte's will was ever public, which would be the only way to know for sure. And I think you have to consider that Charlotte died in 1977, and Grace died in 1982 - not giving Grace many years to wear it, if indeed the tiara did pass to her to stay in the reigning line.

My Top 15 Tiaras: #4: Queen Alia’s Cartier Tiara

This picture is blurry. Yes, I know. I couldn’t find a close-up to this tiara. I love the design to this. It looks so funky and nice!

Alia was Hussein's third wife; his first two marriages ended in divorce. It was King Hussein that gave Alia this stunning diamond tiara from Cartier (which we will appropriately call Queen Alia's Cartier Tiara).

On a non-tiara note for just a second: Alia was quite an interesting figure. She was the first to really develop the role of queen consort in Jordan - the modern, working model that Queen Rania exemplifies today. She died tragically in a helicopter crash in 1977, leaving behind three children: Haya and Ali, and an adopted daughter named Abir. Hussein would marry once more after Alia's death, to Queen Noor.

Resuming gem discussion now: the tiara passed to her daughter, Princess Haya, who is now married to the Sheikh of Dubai. (You may recognize Haya from Ascot and other racing events, even if you're not a regular follower of these royal families.)

Princess Haya has loaned the tiara to Queen Rania rather frequently, particularly at the beginning of King Abdullah's reign when Rania didn't have a tiara collection of her own. (Genealogy check: Abdullah is the son of King Hussein and his second wife, Princess Muna. That makes him Haya's half brother.)

Rania shows off the versatility of the tiara with her varying hairstyles, but she also shows one of the downfalls: the halo effect.

The First Wedding of 2012!

His Royal Highness Prince Hamzah Bin Al Hussein and Her Royal Highness Princess Basma have tied the knot in the presence of His Majesty King Abdullah II, Her Majesty Queen Rania Al Abdullah and Her Majesty Queen Noor Al Hussein.

On the occasion of the signing of the marriage, King Abdullah II held a lunch banquet at Basman Palace in presence of the bride and groom’s families, along with senior officials.

Princess Basma was born in Canada in 1985, where she got her BA degree in Management. She moved to Jordan in 2005, where she joined the Middle East Aviation Academy in Amman, where she got her flight instructor license. Princess Basma has a brother and sister who both live in Canada.

This is the second marriage for Prince Hamzah. He married his cousin, Princess Noor bint Asem in 2003 and divorced in 2009. The couple have a daughter.

My Top 15 Tiaras: #5: The Luxembourg Empire Tiara

 

Grand Duchess Charlotte (right) and her sister Princess Hilda (left) on their wedding days

This regal gem made its public debut on the head of reigning Grand Duchess Charlotte when she married Prince Felix of Bourbon-Parma in 1919. Without exact confirmation of the piece’s origins, speculation points to two sources of family jewels: Grand Duchess Elizabeth Mikhailovna of Russia and Hilda, Grand Duchess of Baden. Elizabeth was the first wife of Charlotte’s grandfather and brought plenty of Romanov jewels with her when she married. With this sort of intricate design and overall opulence, it’s not hard to believe it could be of Russian provenance; indeed, this is the explanation you tend to see most frequently. The other option is Charlotte’s aunt Hilda, who left some jewels to Charlotte and her sisters. One of those sisters, also named Hilda, wore it for her wedding too.

Grand Duchess Charlotte

Charlotte continued to wear the tiara on important occasions during her reign, up to and including the day she abdicated in favor of her son, Jean. She then turned the grand tiara over to her daughter-in-law Joséphine-Charlotte, the new grand duchess.

Grand Duchess Joséphine-Charlotte

Jean abdicated in favor of his son Henri in 2001, but it’s quite possible that Josephine-Charlotte didn’t feel as open to handing things down when it came to her daughter-in-law Maria Teresa. Whether it was out of respect or because she wasn’t given possession of the Empire Tiara, Grand Duchess Maria Teresa did not wear it publicly until after Joséphine-Charlotte’s death.

Grand Duchess Maria Teresa

My Top 15 Tiaras: #6: Amethyst Necklace Tiara

This Tiara has made an appearance on my blog before.

My Top 15 Tiaras: #7: Empress Josephine’s Emerald Tiara

This tiara originates with Empress Joséphine, first wife of Napoléon Bonaparte. It was made for her by the French jeweler Bapst, and is part of a parure that today includes a necklace, earrings, and two brooches. This symmetrical diadem incorporates geometric emeralds in a neo-classical diamond design, all mounted on a frame of gold and silver.
The line of passage of this gem is complex, but here are the highlights: it ended up in the hands of Queen Josephine, who was a granddaughter of the Empress and consort of King Oscar I of Sweden and Norway. From there it stayed in Sweden until it was given to Norway's Crown Princess Märtha by her parents, Prince Carl of Sweden and Princess Ingeborg of Denmark. (Märtha was the granddaughter of King Oscar II of Sweden and had married her cousin, Crown Prince Olav of Norway. Her children are the current King, Harald, and his sisters Astrid and Ragnhild.) Ingeborg received the tiara from Carl's mother, Queen Sofia of Sweden.

After Märtha's untimely death (at the age of 53), the tiara was worn by Princess Astrid. Astrid served as Norway's First Lady alongside her widowed father until her brother Harald married.
Since then, the tiara has become a favorite of Queen Sonja. She's worn it in many official portraits and to many important events, including the weddings of Crown Prince Frederik, Crown Princess Victoria, and her son Crown Prince Haakon.

My Top 15 Tiaras: #8: Queen Ingrid’s Ruby Parure Tiara

 This Tiara has made a appearance on my blog before.