A Resting Place fit for a Queen: The King George VI Memorial Chapel

Lambert, CC BY-SA 2.0 , Wikipedia

As details emerge regarding Queen Elizabeth II's funeral arrangements, one question on many minds is where she will be buried. While Westminster Abbey, the site of her wedding and coronation, as well as the final resting place for previous monarchs, would seem fitting, St George's Chapel, Windsor, has been the preferred location for royal burials. Sovereigns from several dynasties are buried there. While many historical royals are buried in the vault, it is now used as a temporary location to keep coffins until ready for burial at Royal Burial Ground at Frogmore. Or another location, such as the interment of Prince Philip's mother, Princess Andrew of Greece, who was initially interred in the royal vault in 1969 before being transferred in 1988, to the Mount of Olives convent in Jerusalem. The longest royal to stay in the vault is Prince George, Duke of Kent, who died in 1942. It wasn't until 1968, after his wife's death, that he was removed for joint burial. Some members are sent directly to the private burial ground instead. The Duke of Windsor is the only former monarch to be buried there. 

Public domain

In Queen Elizabeth's case, it was very unlikely she would be buried in the private grounds. It is speculated she will be interred in the King George VI Memorial Chapel. This chapel is not specified on the official Royal Family website. As of this writing, the arrangements end with A Committal Service will then take place in St George's Chapel.' But many expect the King George VI Memorial Chapel to be her final resting place. When the Queen's father died in 1952, he was temporarily kept in the King George III vault, until a new chapel was built. The King George VI Memorial Chapel was the first new addition to the St George's Chapel since 1504. 

It was designed by George Pace, with stained glass windows by John Piper and Patrick Reyntiens. There were design challenges in applying a 20th century design that worked with the existing architecture.  Over 200 drawings were created for the building and furnishing of the chapel. The final design was inspired by the spirit of late-Gothic.  Located off the North Quire Aisle, the chapel took nine months to construct and was completed in 1969. It was designed in two parts, the outer Liturgical Chapel and the inner Mortuary Chapel. The chapel is tiny, but it also looks simple. According to the designer, this is not so. The Queen and Queen Mother took a personal interest in the planning and design, which leads me to believe it was planned as a final resting place, not only her father, mother and sister, but also the Queen and Prince Philip in time. 

By VCR Giulio19 - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikipedia

The stonework of the chapel is Clipsham stone, and a polished Purbeck stone floor. The wrought iron gates are inspired by the ones at Edward IV's tomb. The chapel is entered through an arched opening, down three steps, and the ceiling is painted with a network of gold leaf tracery. A black marble ledger stone, reminiscent of the one for Henry VI, marks the entrance to the vault. The names of George VI and his consort, Elizabeth, are inscribed and bronze medallions of the King and Queen are mounted on the wall. The king's medallion was made by William Reid Dick, and the Queen Mother's by Michael Rizzello. A Caithness stone slab commemorates the interment of Princess Margaret, who had died in February 2002. Her ashes were interred at the same time as her mother's coffin in April of that year.

The chapel is furnished with a small stone altar, on top of the altar stands a modern Celtic cross donated by Princess Margaret. The altar has two silver candlesticks on each side. These were presented to the Queen by the Royal Air Force to mark the fiftieth anniversary of its foundation. As Prince Albert, King George VI was certified as a RAF pilot in 1919.

King George VI was privately transferred to the chapel in March 1969. The chapel was dedicated on Monday, March 31st 1969 with a service attended by the Queen, the Queen Mother and other extended royal family members. You can watch footage on the day of the dedication below. 

The message on the gates of the entrance is from the poem, "God Knows', by Minnie Louise Haskins. The King quoted this poem during his 1939 Christmas broadcast.

'I said to the man who stood at the gate of the year;

Give me a light that I may tread safely into the unknown. 

And he replied:

Go out into the darkness and put your hand into the hand of GOD, 

That shall be you better than a light and safer than a known way.'

Prince Philip, who died in 2021, is likely, currently still in the royal vault, with preparations made to inter him with the Queen. George VI referred to himself, his wife and two daughters as 'The Firm'. If the Queen and Prince Philip are interred in the George VI chapel, they will all be together again. 

Update, it has been confirmed that the Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh will be buried together in the King George VI Chapel.

 

Sources

The Royal Tombs of Great Britain by Aidan Dodson

The Royal Way of Death by Olivia Bland

St. George's Chapel Windsor, 1968 and 1969 Annual Reports

The Romance of St. George's Chapel, Windsor Castle

St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle

Windsor Castle, A Thousand Years a Royal Palace

© Marilyn Braun 2022 

Thank you for enjoying this article. If you use the information for research purposes, a link to credit the work I've put into writing it would be appreciated.

The Journey of Princess Diana's 'John Travolta' Dress

US Federal Government - Public Domain

Aside from her wedding dress, few dresses from Diana, Princess of Wales, are as iconic as Victor Edelstein's ink blue silk velvet dinner dress. Inspired by Edwardian dinner dresses, the lightly boned bodice velvet dress is intricately draped with a bow at the waist and a slight bustle at the back with stiffened off-the-shoulder straps. The designer originally made the dress in burgundy, but Diana requested a change to midnight blue. Worn during a 1985 State dinner at the White House, where she famously danced with John Travolta. Accessorized with a sapphire and pearl choker and long satin gloves, it has been dubbed the 'John Travolta dress' ever since.

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Diana wore the dress on at least five major occasions after that, including a State dinner in Germany in December 1987, the premiere of Wall Street in April 1988, and the Royal Opera House in 1991. Inspired by her son Prince William, the Travolta was one of seventy-nine dresses included in the Christie's DRESSES from the Collection of Diana, Princess of Wales auction in New York City on June 25, 1997. The catalogue included a photo by Lord Snowdon of her wearing the dress and her sapphire and pearl choker.

The Travolta dress, lot #79, sold for $222,500 (before the 15% Christie's surcharge), with the highest bid at the auction. At the time it was also one of the most expensive dresses ever sold at auction and the highest bid for an auctioned item of clothing. That record was previously held by John Travolta's famous white suit costume from Saturday Night Fever. Today it is held by Marilyn Monroe's iconic, 'Happy Birthday, Mr. President' dress she wore to serenade John F. Kennedy, at a 1962 Democratic fundraiser. Monroe's dress was bought by Ripley's Believe it or Not! in 2016, for $4.8 million. Diana's dress, for the most part, has avoided that kitschy fate.

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The auction, catalogue sales and special events raised approximately $5.7 million. The seventy-nine dresses sold for $3,258,750. Proceeds from the auction were directed towards charities personally chosen by Diana. These charities were AIDS Crisis Trust and The Royal Marsden Hospital Cancer Fund, AIDS Care Centre, New York Hospital-Cornell Medical Center, The Harvard AIDS Institute and The Evelyn H. Lauder Breast Centre of Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center.

Fourteen of the dresses, including the Travolta dress, were purchased by an anonymous bidder, who was later identified as Maureen Rorech (later Maureen Rorech Dunkle). She purchased the dresses over the phone, as an investment; the largest collection for a single bidder. Because of the amount of dresses, Ms. Rorech had to charter a private jet to transport her collection from New York to Tampa, storing them in a vault.

After Diana's death, Ms. Rorech, set up the People's Princess Charitable Foundation, creating a global travelling exhibit called Dresses for Humanity, eventually raising more than $1.5 million for AIDS, cancer and children's charities. The exhibit toured the world in a variety of venues, including major museums and some less than glamorous locations. I have seen the collection of these dresses twice - when it originally came to Toronto in 1998 and at an exhibit at the Design Exchange, prior to its controversial sale at Waddington's Auction House in 2011. In March 2013, it was sold for the third time, selling for $311,000. It was purchased by an anonymous bidder as a gift for his wife.

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It was included in the Diana: Her Fashion Story exhibit at Kensington Palace from February 2017-February 2019. In December 2019, Kerry Taylor Auctions included the dress as part of its Passion for Fashion sale. The dress was expected to sell for $450,000 but did not receive its reserve bidding price. It was eventually bought, post auction, for $290,000, by Historic Royal Palaces to join the Royal Ceremonial Dress Collection. Thus returning, after 22 years, to its original home at Kensington Palace.

© Marilyn Braun 2020

Thank you for enjoying this article. If you use the information for research purposes, a link to credit the work I've put into writing it would be appreciated.

Royal Focus: Royal Capricorns

Covering the period from December 21st to January 20th, Capricorn is the tenth sign in the zodiac. Capricorns are said to be hardworking, ambitious and determined. The British royal family have several members born under this sign:

Princess Alexandra, The Honourable Lady Ogilvy

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Elegant, refined and a popular royal figure in her heyday. Princess Alexandra Helen Olga Christabel was born on December 25th, 1936 at 3 Belgrave Square in London. Her birth marked a high point in an otherwise bleak year marred by the abdication crisis.  She is the daughter of Princess Marina, Duchess of Kent  and Prince George, Duke of Kent. She has two brothers, Prince Edward, Duke of Kent and Prince Michael of Kent. She married Angus Ogilvy in 1963 and she has two children, James (1964) and Marina (1966) and four grandchildren.

Savannah Phillips

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Born on December 29th, 2010. Savannah Anne Kathleen is the daughter of Peter Philips and Autumn Kelly. Her father is the son of the Princess Royal and first grandchild of the Queen. Savannah herself holds the distinction of being the Queen's first great-grandchild. She has a younger sister, Isla, born in 2012.

Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge

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Born Catherine Elizabeth Middleton on January 9th, 1982 in Reading, she is the daughter of Michael and Carole Middleton. She has two younger siblings, Pippa and James.  She married Prince William in 2011 and they have three children, Prince George (2013), Princess Charlotte (2015) and Prince Louis (2018)

Princess Michael of Kent

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Tall, controversial and never boring, Princess Michael of Kent was born Baroness Marie Christine von Reibnitz on January 15th, 1945. She was previously married to Thomas Troubridge but the marriage ended in divorce in 1977 (the Pope would later grant her an annulment in 1978). She married Prince Michael of Kent on June 30th, 1978 in Vienna. At the time of their marriage, the Act of Settlement 1701 barred royals from marrying Roman Catholics and retaining their succession rights. As a result of their marriage, Prince Michael lost his place in line (15th). After the Succession to the Crown Act passed in 2013, he was reinstated and is now 34th in line. They have two children, Lord Frederick Windsor (1979) and Lady Gabriella Windsor (1981) and two granddaughters, Maud and Isabella.

Mia Tindall

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Mia Grace, first child of Zara Phillips and her husband Mike Tindall, she was born on January 17th, 2014. She is the Queen's fourth great-grandchild. At the age of two, she made a scene stealing appearance proudly holding her 'gan-gan's' purse on the Annie Lebowitz portrait of the Queen with her younger grandchildren and great-grandchildren.


Sophie, Countess of Wessex

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Sophie, Countess of Wessex was born Sophie Helen Rhys-Jones on January 20th, 1965 in Oxford. She is the daughter of Christopher Bournes Rhys-Jones and and the late Mary Rhys-Jones. She has one older brother, David. Prior to her marriage, she worked as a public relations professional, starting her own PR firm RJH Public Relations in 1996. She met Prince Edward in 1993 and they married in 1999. They have two children, Lady Louise Alice Elizabeth Mary Windsor (2003) and James Alexander Philip Theo, Viscount Severn (2007).

© Marilyn Braun 2019

Thank you for enjoying this article. If you use the information for research purposes, a link to credit the work I've put into writing it would be appreciated.

Royal Focus: Battenberg Cake

It started out as a dessert I planned to bring to a party. Little did I know it would become a character building exercise.

When my first attempt failed, making this cake became a mission. I was going to succeed in baking this cake. There it was, perfectly photographed on the internet and I was determined to make a reasonable facsimile. If it happened to taste OK, that would just be an added bonus.

The first incarnation was misshapen and when I tried to trim it to equal sizes, the whole thing fell apart. Trying to find marzipan was harder than I thought, but making homemade marzipan turned out to be harder. So I regrouped.

My second attempt, the taste turned out...well, if you've ever wondered what carpet under-padding tastes like, it might just be close. Trying to trim this cake turned into a disaster. Which I now realize is perfectly understandable considering I cannot draw a straight line to save my life.

My third attempt was a success, mainly thanks to a certain recipe and the technique of using one pan and dividing the batter using a piece of tin foil. The cakes came out almost perfectly. One required a small trim to even it out but otherwise the cake maintained structural integrity while I moved on to the marzipan. My store bought marzipan rolling job is not perfect but hey, that is what photoshop is for.

Ta Dah! And it tastes pretty good too!

Depending on which website you read, the origins of Battenberg cake vary. The most frequently repeated theory is the cake was invented for the 1884 wedding of Princess Victoria of Hesse and by Rhine to Prince Louis of Battenberg. The four squares of the cake are said to represent the four Battenberg princes - Louis, Henry, Alexander and Francis Joseph. It makes for a nice story but it isn't necessarily true. There are knowledgable food historians who cannot find a plausible link between the Battenberg wedding and the invention of the cake. I've included some very detailed posts about the history of the cake in the sources listed below.

Although the definitive origins are lost to the sands of time, the cake did eventually find its way to the royal table. According to an anecdote from in Darren McGrady's book Eating Royally: Recipes and Remembrances from a Palace KitchenSarah Ferguson, Duchess of York loved this cake and would request it whenever she held a tea at Buckingham palace. He once sent up an absolutely perfect Battenberg cake, only to have it returned uneaten, with instructions not to serve her a store bought cake again. With a new appreciation for what goes into making this cake, I shake a virtual fist at Fergie.

The recipe and technique I followed worked charm. The recipe is reproduced with kind permission from Titli from Titli's Busy Kitchen. The video demonstration is entertaining to boot! Note, some of the terms, amounts and temperature have been changed for North American bakers.

Ingredients

• 450 g (1lb) marzipan
• 175 g / 6 oz (3/4 cup) unsalted butter
• 175 g / 6 oz (3/4 cup) caster sugar (superfine granulated sugar)
• 175 g / 6 oz (3/4 cup) self-raising flour (or plain flour + 1 tsp baking powder)
• 3 eggs
• 2-3 tsp apricot glaze (or sieved apricot jam)
• 1 tsp vanilla essence
• Red or pink food colouring
• Icing sugar

Instructions

1. Cream together butter and sugar
2. Whisk the eggs in a small bowl together with the vanilla essence. Add half the eggs to the butter and sugar and beat in.
3. Sieve in half the four and beat well. Now beat in, consecutively, the remaining egg and flour.
4. Lightly grease and line an 8" (20cm) square cake pan with parchment paper. Make a divider from baking foil and place down the centre of the pan.
5. Pour one half of the mixture into one half of the cake pan.
6. Beat in enough food colouring into the remaining mixture to give it a strong pink colour, then pour it into the other half of the cake tin.
7. Bake at 170°C (338°F) for 25-30 minutes and allow to cool before turning the cake out of the pan.
8. Carefully trim the two sponge cakes to give neat rectangles of cake. Place one cake on top of the other and cut down the centre so you have four evenly sized oblongs. Using warm apricot glaze, stick the oblongs together into a checkerboard pattern. Trim further if necessary. 
9. Sprinkle icing sugar onto a flat surface and roll out the marzipan to around 5 mm (1 1/4") thick. spread apricot glaze onto the marzipan and slide the cake into the middle of the marzipan. Fold up the sides and make a neat seam on the top of the cake.
10. Turn the cake over so that the seam is on the bottom and trim the ends of the cake. Place on a serving plate/board and dust with icing sugar.

Battenberg Cake history sources:

Wikiwand - Battenberg Cake 

Battenberg Cake - The Truth

Battenberg Cake - History Again!

The Queen and Her Cakes

Wikipedia - Battenberg Cake


© Marilyn Braun 2017

Thank you for enjoying this article. If you use the information for research purposes, a link to credit the work I've put into writing it would be appreciated.

Royal Focus: The Royal Chocolate Biscuit Cake

Behold, the Chocolate Biscuit cake. This cake may sound familiar to royal watchers as it is a royal favourite of the Queen and Prince William. He even chose it as one of the royal wedding cakes!

The 'groom's cake' at the royal wedding reception was made by McVitie's Cake Company using a royal family recipe. Now part of United Biscuits, the Royal Warrant holders have been making cakes for royal weddings and christenings since the wedding of Prince George, Duke of York and Princess May of Teck in 1893. The company, then known as McVitie and Price Ltd, also made the official royal wedding cake for Princess Elizabeth in 1947 and the official cake for the Queen and Prince Philip's 60th wedding anniversary in 2007.

This cake is no bake and super easy to make. As you can see, my icing and moulding skills need some work but luckily it doesn't affect the taste. You can find this recipe in Darren McGrady's excellent cookbook, Eating Royally: Recipes and Remembrances from a Palace Kitchen. Note that Darren has said that his book will be coming out in seventh printing soon for $24.99

This recipe is reproduced with kind permission from Darren McGrady.

Ingredients:

1/2 teaspoon butter, for greasing pan
8 ounces McVities Rich Tea biscuits (I found them at the Bulk Food Barn in Canada)
1/2 stick (4 tablespoons) unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup granulated sugar
4 ounces of dark chocolate
1 egg, beaten
8 ounces dark chocolate, for icing
1 ounces white chocolate, for decoration

Instructions:

Lightly grease a small (6 x 2/1/2-inch) cake ring with 1/2 teaspoon of butter and place on a parchment-lined tray. Break each of the biscuits into almond-sized pieces by hand and set aside (do not process the biscuits). Cream the butter and sugar in a bowl until the mixture is a light lemon color.

Melt the 4 ounces of dark chocolate in a double boiler. If you don't have a double boiler you can use a metal bowl on top of a pot of simmering water. Add the butter and sugar mixture to the chocolate and stir constantly. Ad the egg and continue stirring. Fold in the biscuit pieces until they are all coated with the chocolate mixture.

Spoon the chocolate biscuit mixture into the prepared cake ring. Try to fill all of the gaps in the bottom of the ring, because this will be the top when it is unmolded. Chill the cake in the refrigerator for at least three hours.

Remove the cake from the refrigerator, and let it stand while you melt the 8 ounces of dark chocolate for the icing. Slide the ring off the cake and turn the cake upside down onto a cooling/wire rack. Pour the 8 ounces of melted dark chocolate over the cake, and smooth the top and sides using an offset-spatula. Allow the chocolate icing to set at room temperature. Carefully run a knife around the bottom of the cake where it has stuck to the cooling rack, and transfer cake to a cake dish. Melt the white chocolate and drizzle on top of the cake in a decorative pattern.

Cut and serve!

© Marilyn Braun 2017

Thank you for enjoying this article. If you use the information for research purposes, a link to credit the work I've put into writing it would be appreciated.

Royal Focus: Royal Family Order

Since the reign of King George IV, most sovereigns have created a form of royal family order for members of the royal family, usually female, to wear on formal occasions. Two monarchs who did not create orders (as we know them today) are William IV and Edward VIII. Edward abdicated before he could do so and William IV's order consisted of two square crowned buckles with the ciphers of him and his consort, Queen Adelaide.

William IV & Queen Adelaide Family Order
Royal Collection Trust / © Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II 2016

The order as we know it today features a portrait of the sovereign surrounded by diamonds and suspended from a silk bow which changes color upon each new reign. Some versions vary in size depending on the recipient. For instance, King Edward VII gave his wife Queen Alexandra a larger and more elaborate version of his order. Lesser versions of these orders exist for Mistresses of Robes and Ladies-in-waiting.

Orders are normally worn with evening dress, and if more than one order is worn, they are layered with the more recent order is at the top. They are usually pinned to the left shoulder but there have been some exceptions to this. In C.R. Leslie's painting, The Christening of Victoria, The Princess Royal, Queen Adelaide, the Duchess of Kent and the Duchess of Gloucester can be seen wearing the George IV order on their right shoulder.  In the past, family orders have been worn by royal brides (Queen Alexandra, Queen Mary and Princess Marina, Duchess of Kent), funerals, coronations, day-time events and State Openings of Parliament. Since King George IV's time, the appearance of the order has changed and evolved:

Royal Collection Trust / © Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II 2016

King George IV regarded his order as a personal memento rather than a state decoration. His order is made of gold and silver and features diamond frame of oak leaves and acorns. The King is depicted in his Field Marshal's uniform, Golden Fleece, stars of Garter, Holy Spirit, Black Eagle and St Andrew on a dark background with a white, fringed bow.

Sovereign's badge of the Order of Victoria & Albert
Royal Collection Trust / © Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II 2016

Unlike King George IV, Queen Victoria did not create an royal family order. Instead, she created her own Victoria and Albert order. The order began as a family token given to her elder daughters at their confirmations. However, after Prince Albert's death, as a way to honor his memory, Victoria established the order on February 10, 1862, her twenty-second wedding anniversary.

Unlike other sovereign family orders, both the Queen and Prince Albert appear on the cameo badge. The badge is made of white on brown onyx, silver gilt, enamel, diamonds, rubies and emeralds on a white silk ribbon. The Queen's own badge features Prince Albert's head above her own. For recipients, the Queen's head is in front of Prince Albert's.

The order was divided into four classes and was granted to the Queen's daughters, daughters-in-law, grand-daughters who were British princesses and other European Queens. Classes were in a descending order for members of the Royal Family and Royal Household and the design varied depending on the Class. The second class featured a shell cameo instead of stone and set with pearls rather than diamonds. The First Class order was given to her daughter in law, Princess Alexandra (future Queen Alexandra), the day before her 1863 wedding and she wore it on her wedding dress the following day. Princess Victoria Mary of Teck (later Queen Mary) also wore the Victoria and Albert badge, along with the Order of the Crown of India, on her wedding day in 1893.

 Although there was no official register, a list of known recipients by class is here. The last holder of this order, Princess Alice, Countess of Athlone, last surviving grandchild of Queen Victoria, died in 1981.

King Edward VII Family Order
Royal Collection Trust / © Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II 2016

King Edward VII's family order was maintained as an informal family gift rather than an official order. It depicts the King wearing a Field Marshal's uniform with Garter sash and Bath badge on a brown background. The badge is suspended on a blue, yellow and red striped ribbon - the King's racing colors. His portrait is painted on enamel and this is the form it the badge has taken ever since. Queen Alexandra, his daughter's, daughter-in-law and his sisters were amongst the recipients.

Order of Queen Alexandra
Royal Collection Trust / © Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II 2016

His wife, Queen Alexandra had her own unofficial order given to family members and those in her service. The design of the badge is inspired by a miniature portrait of King Christian IX and Queen Louise given out to mark their Silver Wedding anniversary. Like Alexandra's, it is set in an oval frame of pearls and diamond crosses set with diamond chips and suspended from a red and white bow. Alexandra's own version (above) has Edward VII in Field Marshal's uniform with Garter sash and ribbons in front of Queen Alexandra who wears a white dress, pearl choker and crown. Alexandra's Danish heritage is also reflected in the red and white ribbon; the colors of the Danish flag.

View image | gettyimages.com

In the image above, the Queen wears the orders of her father, King George VI and her grandfather, King George V. The King George V order was established in 1911 and came in four sizes, the largest for Queen Mary and smaller badges for his sisters, aunts, daughters-in-law and grandchildren. The King is wearing the uniform of the Admiral of the Fleet and he wears the Star and Riband of the Garter and the Royal Victorian Chain. His miniature is surrounded by brilliant cut diamonds and surmounted by a diamond imperial crown, which has a crimson enameled cap of maintenance. The pale blue silk ribbon is the same color as King George IV's. The Queen is the only surviving recipient of King George V's family order.

The King George VI family order was established in 1937. Like his father, the King wears the uniform of Admiral of the Fleet, the Star and Riband of the Garter and the Royal Victorian Chain. King George VI's riband color is pale pink. The Queen and Princess Alexandra (received in 1951) are the only surviving recipients of this order.

View image | gettyimages.com

Queen Elizabeth II's family order was established in 1952 and given to several royal ladies on Christmas day of that year. Her miniature portrait is based on a photograph by Dorothy Wilding and bordered by baguette and brilliant cut diamonds and surmounted by a Tudor Crown in diamonds on a red enamel cushion. Her riband bow is chartreuse yellow. The Queen is wearing the King George IV State Diadem and the Star and Riband of the Garter. The jewels she is wearing are the Nizam of Hyderabad diamond necklace and her diamond and pearl drop earrings; a wedding gift from the Sheikh of Bahrain. The Queen never wears her own order. The queen has lesser versions of her order, given to her Mistress of the Robes and Ladies-in-waiting.

Given at the discretion of the sovereign, there is no specific timeline for when a royal lady receives the royal family order, nor is it automatic for those marrying into the royal family. There is also no specific age for recipients and even children have received it. In 1826, at the age of seven, Princess Victoria, (future Queen Victoria), received the order from her uncle, George IV. The present Queen received the orders of her grandfather, King George V and her father, King George VI as a child and can be seen wearing them at her parent's coronation in 1937.

Princess Anne received her mother's order in 1969, the Duchess of Gloucester in 1973, Katharine, the Duchess of Kent, reportedly not long after her marriage in 1961 and Sophie Wessex in 2004 (five years after her marriage). Despite marrying the Queen's (reportedly) favorite son, Sarah Ferguson never received the order nor has Princess Michael of Kent.

As it is never announced in advance, it is difficult to know exactly when an order is given. Therefore, we have to go by when it was worn in public for the first time. Despite being a senior royal, Diana did not wear a royal order when she attended her first or second State Opening of Parliament in November 4th, 1981 and November 3rd, 1982 respectively. Diana wore the order a few weeks later, for the first time on November 18, 1982 (16 months after her marriage) at a banquet honoring Queen Beatrix at Hampton Court palace.

Camilla Parker Bowles married Prince Charles in April 2005 and attended her first state banquet in October of the same year. She is not wearing the order at that event, instead she wore something more striking, the Delhi Durbar tiara. She reportedly received the order two years after her marriage and can be seen wearing it in October 2007. This was widely interpreted as a visible sign of acceptance by the Queen.

At present, there is speculation about whether Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge has received the order. Rumors abounded that she would wear it at the October 2015 banquet to mark the Chinese State visit but this turned out to be false. Should Catherine wear it in the near future, it will likely provoke some deeper scrutiny by the media and royal watching community, with various possible interpretations. Could Catherine having the order be seen as a sign of approval and support of the current status quo of her not being a full-time royal? Or could it be the Queen's form of a 'nudge' to finally step up to the plate? We will only learn when we see her in public wearing it.

© Marilyn Braun 2016

Thank you for enjoying this article. If you use the information for research purposes, a link to credit the work I've put into writing it would be appreciated.

Sources:

Royal Orders by Hugo Vickers
Royal Insignia in The Royal Collection
The Royal Encyclopedia
The official website of the British Monarchy
The Royal Collection Website
The Queen's Jewels
Wikipedia
Project Gutenberg
Victoria & Albert in Love
Five Gold Rings: A Royal Wedding Souvenir Album

Royal Focus: Princess Mary 1914 Christmas Gift Tin

They were meant to bring comfort and boost morale to those fighting in the front line during the First World War. The Princess Mary Christmas tin from 1914 is possibly the best known wartime royal memento, but she was not the first royal to send a thoughtful item to the troops. Her great-grandmother, Queen Victoria, had done something similar in 1900 during the Boer War.

Imperial War Museum © IWM (EPH 3347)

As a personal New Years gift, Queen Victoria sent tins filled with chocolate to British soldiers serving in South Africa. The chocolate was supplied by three British chocolate manufacturers: Cadbury's, Fry's and Rowntree's. The red, blue and gold tins were designed by Fry's and copied by the other companies. Although they vary in size, all feature a portrait of Queen Victoria with her royal monogram and South Africa 1900 written beside it. Below the portrait, written in cursive is 'I wish you a happy New Year' with her signature below it. As Quakers, the companies were reluctant to support the war effort because of their pacifism but loyalty to the Queen won out. Following Queen Victoria's example, in 1901 Queen Alexandra sent a Christmas gift to the Boer War troops in the form of 5,500 monogrammed silver mounted briar pipes.

In 1914, the same year of Princess Mary's gift tin, her grandmother, Queen Alexandra the Queen Mother, also sent a similar gilt-tin as a personal gift to members of Household regiments. These tins contained a card and 18 cigarettes, each printed with her name. Alexandra's tins were not as widely distributed as Princess Mary's making them rarer.

Imperial War Museum © IWM (EPH 2716)

However, it is the Princess Mary Christmas brass tin from 1914 which is the best known. Inspired by her hospital visits to wounded soldiers, Princess Mary, the seventeen year old daughter of King George V and Queen Mary, sent out a public appeal in national newspapers for the 'Sailor and Soldiers Christmas fund' to provide a Christmas gift for ‘every sailor afloat and every soldier at the front'. In the first week the fund had received £12,000 in donations. The following week this amount had risen to £31,000. By the time the fund closed in 1920 it had raised £162,591.

Photo © Marilyn Braun

The embossed brass tin boxes were designed by Messrs Adshead and Ramsay. They feature a profile portrait of Princess Mary surrounded by laurel leaves with two Princess Mary 'M' monograms on either side. Inscribed on a cartouche at the top of the box are the words 'Imperium Britannicum', with a sword and scabbard on either side. In other cartouches around the edge and sides of the box are the names of Britain’s allies in the First World War; France, Russia, Belgium, Servia, Montenegro, and Japan. France and Russia are each superimposed on three furled flags. At the bottom is inscribed 'Christmas 1914.' flanked by the bows of battleships forging through a heavy sea.

There were challenges in producing the brass tin itself and its contents. Some items were considered luxuries and with metals being used to create munitions, brass was becoming harder to come by. Sheets of brass had to be ordered from the United States and a large quantity was lost in the 1915 tragic sinking of the US Lusitania. As metal shortages increased, many of the subsequent tins were made of cheap alloy metal. Despite the difficulties, the boxes were a success. The recipients were divided into three classes, and there were different variations in the contents, which you can read about here.

With over 2.5 million tins distributed, unlike Victoria and Alexandra's tins, Mary's are neither unique or rare. But they were no doubt cherished by appreciative recipients serving in the Great War.

Resources:

Harewood: A Christmas Legacy Continues
Kinnethmont: The Princess Mary 1914 Christmas Gift
Australian War Memorial: Princess Mary's Christmas Gift 
National Army Museum: Queen Victoria's Gift Chocolate Box, 1900
Presentation Pipes with particular reference to the Queen Alexandra Pipe
 Museum Victoria Collections
Queen Victoria and Queen Alexandra's tin images from Imperial War Museum

© Marilyn Braun 2015

Thank you for enjoying this article. If you use the information for research purposes, a link to credit the work I've put into writing it would be appreciated.

Royal Focus: Royal Godparents

When Princess Charlotte is christened on Sunday July 5th, she will traditionally be given five or six godparents/sponsors. Prince William has paid tribute to his mother in his daughter's name, the church where his own mother was baptized and chosen Mario Testino, Diana's favorite photographer, to take the official photographs. Because William is choosing to underline the Diana connection so heavily, I think it is likely that he will also choose someone from the Spencer side of his family as one of Charlotte's godparents,  potentially one of Diana's sisters, Lady Sarah McCorquodale or Lady Jane Fellowes. This would be a unique choice as neither William, Harry or Prince George have a Spencer family member included amongst their godparents. From the Spencer side, it is interesting to note that each of Diana's siblings have a royal godparent - except for her!


At one point godparents were drawn heavily from members of the immediate and extended royal family. Over time the emphasis has shifted to godparents with loyal connections rather than royal family ties. For instance, unlike his grandfather Prince Charles, who had five royal godparents,  Prince George only has one with a royal connection, Zara Phillips.


The Queen and Princess Margaret


The Queen's godparents were comprised entirely of family members and included her paternal grandparents King George V and Queen Mary, her maternal grandfather, the Earl of Strathmore, her aunts Princess Mary (later Princess Royal), Lady Elphinstone and her great-great uncle Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught.

Princess Elizabeth christening photograph
Royal Collection website

Princess Margaret's godparents were her uncle, Edward, Prince of Wales, Princess Ingrid of Sweden (later Queen of Denmark) and Princess Victoria, favorite sister of King George V. The maternal side of her family was represented by her mother's siblings, Lady Rose Levenson-Gower and the Honorable David Bowes-Lyon.


The Queen's children

Prince Charles' godparents were his grandfather, King George VI, his maternal great-grandmother, Queen Mary, his paternal great-grandmother, Victoria, Marchioness of Milford Haven, David Bowes-Lyon, Lady Brabourne, King Haakon of Norway and Prince George of Greece.

Prince Charles christening photograph
Royal Collection website

Princess Anne's godparents were, from the maternal side: her grandmother, Queen Elizabeth, and The Rev and Hon. Andrew Elphinstone (son of Lady Elphinstone, godmother of the Queen). Her paternal godparents were her grandmother, Princess Andrew of Greece, aunt Princess Margarita and great-uncle Earl Mountbatten of Burma.

Princess Anne christening photograph
Royal Collection website

Prince Andrew's godparents were his great-uncle Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester, Princess Alexandra, Lord Elphinstone, the Earl of Euston and Mr. Harold Phillips.


Prince Edward's godparents were Prince Richard of Gloucester, the Duchess of Kent, his uncle by marriage, the Earl of Snowdon, Princess George of Hanover and Prince Louis of Hesse.


The Queen's grandchildren


Interesting to note that, unlike previous generations of royal children, none of her grandchildren or great-grandchildren have the Queen or Prince Philip as a godparent. Previous monarchs, Queen Victoria, King Edward VII, Queen Alexandra, King George V, Queen Mary, King George VI and Queen Elizabeth all served as godparents to various grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

Peter Phillips godparents were his uncle, the Prince of Wales, the Rt. Rev Geoffrey Tiarks, Captain Hamish Lochare, Lady Cecil Cameron of Lochiel and Mrs. Timothy Holderness-Roddam.


Zara Phillips's godparents were her uncle the Duke of York, the Countess of Litchfield, Mrs. Jackie Steward, Colonel Andrew Parker-Bowles (first husband of Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall), and Mr. Hugh Thomas.


Prince William's godparents were ex-King Constantine of Greece, Lord Romsey, Sir Laurens van der Post, Princess Alexandra, the Duchess of Westminster and Lady Susan Hussey.

Prince William christening photograph
Royal Collection website

Prince Harry's godparents were his uncle, the Duke of York, Lady Sarah Armstrong-Jones, Lady Vestey, Mrs. William Bartholomew, Mr. Bryan Organ and Mr. Gerald Ward.


Princess Beatrice's godparents were Viscount Linley, Peter Palumbo, the Duchess of Roxburghe, Mrs. Harry Cotterell and Mrs John Greenall.


Princess Eugenie's godparents were James Ogilvy, Captain Alistair Ross, Mrs Ronald Ferguson, Mrs Patrick Dodd-Noble and Miss Louise Blacker.


Lady Louise Windsor's godparents include: Lady Sarah Chatto (nee Armstrong Jones), Lord Ivar Mountbatten, Lady Alexandra Etherington, Mrs Francesca Schwarzenbach and Mr Rupert Elliott.

James, Viscount Severn's godparents were Denise Poulton, Jeanye Irwin, Alastair Bruce, 5th Baron Aberdare, Duncan Bullivant, and Tom Hill.


The Queen's great-grandchildren



Despite their royal connections, the parents of Savannah and Isla Phillips and Mia Tindall have not announced the godparents for their own children.


However, we do know the ones for Prince George: Oliver Baker, Emilia Jardine-Paterson, Earl Grosvenor, Jamie Lowther-Pinkerton, Julia Samuel, William van Cutsem and Zara Tindall.

Prince George on his christening day with his parents and great-grandmother
British Monarchy Flickr

It will be interesting to see who William and Catherine choose to be godparents for Princess Charlotte. Will her parents honor a Spencer family member? We shall find out soon enough!

UPDATE: Princess Charlotte has five godparents (two fewer than George). They are: Miss Sophie Carter, Mr. James Meade, Mr. Alan Middleton, Mr. Thomas van Straubenzee, and from the Spencer side, The Hon. Laura Fellowes. I guessed Lady Jane but William and Kate chose her daughter instead!


© Marilyn Braun 2015

Thank you for enjoying this article. If you use the information for research purposes, a link to credit the work I've put into writing it would be appreciated.


Sources


The Royal Encyclopedia by Ronald Alllison and Sarah Riddell
Princess Margaret by Theo Aronson
Official site for the British Monarchy
British Monarchy Flickr
The Royal Collection website
Wikipedia

Don't you just love a royal scandal?

I don't know if you've noticed but lately there's been a lag in royal news. Queen Beatrix's abdication just serves as a reminder of how dull British royal news has become. It is truly a sad situation when other royal houses do more interesting things than the British do.

Case in point. The Dutch abdication is historic. Right now all we have to work with is Kate going to Starbucks and shopping at the Gap and Harry expressing ambivalence towards his destiny. Ho hum stuff. The British royal family is ripe for a royal scandal in 2013. I just know it. I'm not referring to a scandal where someone dies. Nothing that dire. No, what we need is a scandal we can sink our teeth into, one that lights up Twitter and royal message boards and inspires columnists to write sanctimonious articles that add nothing to the solution.

2012 was not a boring year. What with the photos of Harry in Las Vegas and Kate's topless photos in France. If I had known that was the best the royals could do, well I would have savored the fallout more. So far 2013 has turned out to be rather dull in this respect. True, it is January. But as February approaches, the signs are not good.

It's not as if we don't have something to look forward to. Yes, yes, I know William and Catherine's baby will arrive in July. Yes, the Queen is celebrating the anniversary of her coronation. I'm sure Charles and Camilla will take the tube again. Maybe this will be the year Princess Anne smiles.  *Yawn* Excuse me while I await the stamps, coins and multiple commemorative issues from Hello magazine.

Harry used to be the go-to royal for entertainment value. What with his rugged good looks and complete inability to distinguish from inside your head thoughts vs outside your head thoughts.Much like when Fergie reappears. It seems they can no longer shock us. It's more a case of shaking heads and sighing "OK, what did she/he do this time?" The only way Harry could shock us now is if he said something diplomatic.

I'm not picky. I'll settle for an illegitimate child, maybe someone can unexpectedly come out of the closet. If they run out of ideas they can look to the Monegasques and run off with someone from the circus or marry someone against their will!

Fingers crossed!

© Marilyn Braun 2013

Thank you for enjoying this article. If you use the information for research purposes, a link to credit the work I've put into writing it would be appreciated.

Royal Focus: Kate Middleton's Coat of Arms

Image source:
Wikipedia

Another item crossed off Kate's to-do list!

Kate Middleton's Coat of Arms have recently been unveiled. Commissioned by her father, Michael Middleton, these arms reflect the Middleton family history and preferences.

This version of the arms hangs from a tied blue ribbon, symbolizing Kate's current unmarried state and can only be used by Kate, up to her wedding day, and her sister Pippa Middleton.

The arms are lozenge shaped rather than a shield - a shape reserved for men. The design features three acorn sprigs, representing each of the Middleton children - Catherine, Phillipa and James. A touch reportedly suggested by Kate. The acorns also symbolize oak trees, a traditional symbol of England and a feature of west Berkshire, where the family have lived for 30 years.

The colours blue and red were chosen as they are the principle colours from the flag of the United Kingdom.The dividing line (between two colours) down the centre is a canting of the name 'Middle-ton'. At the centre is a gold inverted "V" reflecting Kate's mother Carole's maiden name Goldsmith.

The two thin white chevrons on each side of the band are meant to symbolize peaks and mountains, representing the Middleton's love of the Lake District and skiing.

The arms will appear on the back of the souvenir wedding program, with those of Prince William on the front. After their marriage, Kate's arms will be impaled with those of her husband.

© Marilyn Braun 2011

Thank you for enjoying this article. If you use the information for research purposes, a link to credit the work I've put into writing it would be appreciated.

Royal Focus: The Duchess of Windsor's wedding dress

The Duchess of Windsor's wedding dress was made by American designer Mainbocher for her 1937 wedding to the Duke of Windsor.

Made of sapphire blue silk crepe, the dress was cut simply and was floor length, flaring out at the feet like a mermaids tail. Flute-draped into a heart shape at the bust it had a matching long sleeved jacket fastened with a line of covered buttons the size of shelled peas. The original color of the dress was a color that Mainbocher had created for the Duchess called 'Wallis Blue," to match the Duchess's eyes.

Her hat was a blue straw bonnet trimmed with pink and blue coq feathers by Caroline Reboux. Her pale blue crepe wrist-length gloves opened up on the ring finger of her left hand. On her feet she wore powder blue suede pumps with three-inch heels by Georgette of Paris. Although the dye on the dress has faded, the shoes and the coq feathers decorating the hat have retained their color.

On her wedding day, Wallis Warfield (she had changed back to her maiden name) wore the sapphire and diamond 'marriage contract' bracelet on her right wrist.On her left wrist she wore a diamond bracelet with Latin crosses. At the throat of her blue crepe wedding dress, she wore an art deco geometric style curving double clip with oval sapphires and radiating baguette diamonds. This brooch was made by Van Cleef in 1936.

Shortly after the wedding copies of the Duchess of Windsor's wedding dress, which reportedly cost $250, were being sold in various department stores. Like other royal brides. Even on her wedding day she was a trend-setter.

In 1950 the original dress was donated to the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

© Marilyn Braun 2011

Image of wedding dress via http://www.metmuseum.org/

Wedding day image via Wikipedia

Royal Focus: Royal Warrants

The next time you enjoy some Twinning tea or Johnnie Walker you may want to take a close look at the package. You may have seen this particular image before and not known what it means.

Since the Middle Ages, tradesmen and companies that have provided a service or goods to the Sovereign have received formal recognition through a Royal Warrant. Originally this patronage took the form of 'royal charters' granted collectively to various guilds in trades and crafts, which later became known as livery companies.

The first on record was given by Henry II in 1155 to the Weavers Company. Over the centuries, the relationship evolved between the Crown and individual tradesmen and was formalized through 'royal warrants'.  Currently, only three members of the royal family grant royal warrants - The Queen, The Duke of Edinburgh and the Prince of Wales. When she was alive, the Queen Mother also granted warrants, which were kept valid until 2007 - five years after her death. They are granted to companies that have provided services to the royal family for a minimum of five years. Upon issue, the royal warrant allows the grantee or company to use 'By Royal Appointment' and display the royal coat of arms on their products such as stationery, advertisements and other printed material, in his or her premises and on delivery vehicles.

Royal warrants are initially granted for five years after which point they come up for review. Should the goods or service reduce in quality or the supply of the product is insufficient to the Royal Household, a royal warrant will not be renewed. The warrants may be cancelled at any time or automatically come up for review should the holder die, leaves the business or if the company goes bankrupt or is sold. Some companies have a record of royal warrants over a 100 years. The Queen, the Duke of Edinburgh and the Prince of Wales can grant only one warrant to any individual business, however, there are some companies that hold all three.

Royal warrants are granted for a number of products and services, including dry-cleaners to fishmongers, agricultural machinery to computer software.  There are currently approximately 800 Royal warrant holders, holding over 1,100 Royal warrants between them (some have more than one Royal warrant).

Royal Focus: Princess Diana's Wedding Dress

When people attempt to describe the wedding dress of Diana, Princess of Wales, the words voluminous, iconic, meringue, fairy-tale tend to be used. But it's difficult to put into words the impact of it both on fashion and on the memory of those who watched Diana alight from the carriage, as if a 'butterfly emerging from a chrysalis'. Unlike any royal wedding dress before or since Diana's will always be in a league of its own.

The dress, designed by David and Elizabeth Emanuel, took four months to make and was made of ivory pure silk taffeta. The bodice was fitted and boned with a wide frill around the curved neckline. It has embroidered lace panels on the front and back. The sleeves are full and gathered into a taffeta frill at the elbow with lace flounce underneath. The skirt of the dress as full, worn over a crinoline petticoat consisting of many layers of ivory tulle and trimmed around the waist and hem with embroidered lace.

The train, trimmed with lace, was 25-feet long - the longest to date.

The veil, measuring 11 1/2 foot by 40 foot, was hand-embroidered with 10,000 3mm mother-of-pearl sequins. Diana wore the Spencer family tiara for something borrowed. The something old was a piece of lace from Queen Mary, and for something blue, the Emanuel's hand-sewed a little blue bow into the back of the dress. The couple also added a tiny,golden horse-shoe made of 18-carat Welsh gold, studded with diamonds, sewn into the back of the label of the dress.

Diana carried a large, cascading bouquet. On her feet Diana wore slippers by Clive Shilton. Trimmed with lace from the dress, and made of silk duchess satin, dyed to match the color of the dress, the shoes had 542 mother-of-pearl sequins on each pair, each knotted by hand. The fluted heel was made of bits of leather and wood and the soles were hand-painted with the letters "C" and "D" entwined with a heart.

© Marilyn Braun 2010

Thank you for enjoying this article. If you use the information for research purposes, a link to credit the work I've put into writing it would be appreciated.

Royal Focus: Queen Elizabeth II's Royal Wedding Dress

When Queen Elizabeth II, at the time Princess Elizabeth, married in 1947, her wedding dress was a stunning creation despite the post war austerity and strict rationing laws. Princess Elizabeth herself was not exempt from the rationing and reportedly saved her clothing coupons for her wedding dress. She received an extra two hundred coupons from the government and many loyal subjects sent in their own coupons. However, it was illegal to give away clothing coupons and the princess returned them to their rightful owners with a note of thanks.

The wedding dress was made by Norman Hartnell and the design was inspired by an image of Primavera by the painter Botticelli. The figure, with its trailing garlands of jasmine, smilax, syringa and rose-like blossoms - was derived from the classical godess of flowers, Flora, and suggested to him the promise of growth and new beginnings.

Hartnell started work on the dress in August, a mere three months before the wedding in November. Although he was no stranger to designing dresses for royalty, this comission had its share of unique challenges and he had to white-wash the windows of his workroom to keep the dress under wraps. Requiring some materials from the United States, Hartnell sent his manager, Captain Mitchison in his place. Upon his return, when asked if he had anything to declare, Captain Mitchison replied that he had 10,000 pearls for Princess Elizabeth's wedding dress. When the chosen fabric for the dress was publicized, some demanded to know the nationality of the silkworms; whether they were from 'enemy' territories such as Japan or Italy. A crisis was averted when it was confirmed that the larvae had been supplied by China.

Despite these obstacles the dress was a triumph. Decorated with 10,000 pearls, the ivory dress of duchess satin was in the Princess style with a fitted bodice and the neckline had a deep-scalloped edge. The front bodice was cut in three panels and the back cut in four, fastening down the centre back with buttons and loops. The wrist-length, tight-fitting  sleeves ended in embroidered cuffs. From the low-pointed waist, the skirt, cut on the cross, extended to a deep circular train.

The 15-foot star patterned silk tulle train, fastened at the shoulders was embroidered with crystal and appliqué duchesse satin  Working with his head embroideress, Hartnell laid tracing paper out on his workroom floor and carefully marked out the pattern in pencil. The white York roses were padded satin, and the ears of corn and orange blossom in diamante and pearl embroidery, inspired by Primavera. The long veil was held in place by a diamond fringe tiara, lent to the Princess, as something borrowed, by her mother, the Queen. She wore two pearl necklaces (the Queen Anne and the Queen Caroline pearls) given as a wedding gift by her parents, and pearl and diamond earrings, a twentieth birthday present from Queen Mary.

She wore ivory duchesse satin high-heeled sandals, trimmed with silver and seed pearl buckles, made by Edward Rayne. Her floral bouquet was supplied by the Worshipful Company of Gardeners and made by Martin Longman, consisted of white orchids with a sprig of myrtle, taken, as per royal wedding tradition, from a bush at Osbourne.

© Marilyn Braun 2010

Primavera by Botticelli image via Wikipedia.