Vladimir Fringe Tiara

Today marks the anniversary of the birth of Grand Duchess Elena Vladimirovna / Princess Nicholas of Greece, the only daughter of Grand Duke Vladimir Alexandrovich of Russia and Duchess Marie of Mecklenburg-Schwerin who married Prince Nicholas of Greece and was the mother of of Princess Paul of YugoslaviaPrincess Marina, Duchess of Kent, and Princess Elisabeth, Countess of Törring-Jettenbach. To mark the day, we are taking a look the Vladimir Fringe Tiara-

The Vladimir Fringe Tiara was a wedding gift to Duchess Marie of Mecklenburg-Schwerin when she married Grand Duke Vladimir Alexandrovich of Russia in 1874. Diamond Fringe Tiaras mimicked the shape of the traditional Russian Kokoshnik headdress, and were found in the jewellery box of most Romanov ladies. The Grand Duchess Vladimir wore the Tiara in a more conventional manner as well as an inventive sunburst.

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In 1902, Grand Duchess Vladimir gave the Fringe Tiara to her only daughter Grand Duchess Elena Vladimirovna when she Prince Nicholas of Greece, who also received ‘a diamond tiare russe of the type given to all grand-duchesses, which could also be worn as a necklace’ as a wedding gift from the Tsar and a Diamond Kokoshnik Tiara from her mother. Princess Nicholas wore the Tiara in a portrait in 1910.

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The Vladimir Fringe Tiara was worn by Princess Nicholas’ youngest daughter, Princess Elisabeth of Greece, when she married Count Carl Theodor of Törring-Jettenbach in 1934, and just a few months later by her elder daughter, Princess Marina when she married Prince George, Duke of Kent, who also received a Fringe Tiara from the City of London as a wedding gift. The Fringe had already been worn by the eldest daughter, Princess Olga, at the Wedding of Prince Philipp of Hesse and Princess Mafalda of Savoy in 1925.

However the Vladimir Fringe Tiara remained with Prince Nicholas, who wore it for glittering events in Greece, hanging on to it throughout frequent exiles, and abroad as she remained an active member of the Greek Royal Family up until her death in 1957.

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The Vladimir Fringe Tiara was inherited by her granddaughter Countess Helene of Törring-Jettenbach, who had worn it the previous year for her wedding to Archduke Ferdinand of Habsburg-Lorraine. Archduchess Helen wore the Tiara for numerous occasions from the 1950s up to the present day.

In 1990, Archduchess Helene’s daughter, Archduchess Sophie of Habsburg-Lorraine, wore the Vladimir Fringe Tiara for her Wedding to Prince Mariano-Hugo von Windisch-Grätz in Salzburg.

More recently, the Vladimir Fringe Tiara was worn by Sara Maya al-Askari for her Wedding to Archduke Maximilian of Habsburg-Lorraine in Rome in 2005. It remains with Archduchess Helene, and as her grandchildren reach marriageable age, it won’t be long till we see the Vladimir Fringe again.

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5 thoughts on “Vladimir Fringe Tiara

  1. This article was super interesting! I knew that Princess Marina wore her mother’s fringe for her wedding, but I never knew where it ended up after the Grand Duchess’ death. It looks like it skipped a generation and was inherited by her granddaughter. Maybe to avoid excessive taxation?

    1. It skipped a generation because Pricness Elxsabeth, Countess of Toerring-Jettenbach had died 2 years before her mother in 1955.
      Will be interesting to see where the tiara ends after Archduchess Helene. If it remains with her son or goes to her daughter as in the past it was always inherited/gifted through the maternal line.

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