Today marks the 175th Anniversary of the Birth of Princess Louise, Duchess of Argyll, who was born on this day in 1848! The fascinating artistic daughter of Queen Victoria who became the popular Viceregal Consort of Canada before becoming the illustrious Duchess of Argyll, Princess Louise possessed some splendid jewels, which included her Diamond Daisy Brooches!
Queen Victoria’s Emerald Tiara | Diamond Daisy Brooches | Emerald Brooch
Princess Louise received these three Diamond Daisy Brooches, created by Garrard, as a wedding gift from her siblings, Prince Arthur, Prince Leopold and Princess Beatrice, ahead of her marriage to the Marquess of Lorne, heir to the Dukedom of Argyll in 1871, and wore the Daisy Brooches to hold her veil in place on her wedding day at Windsor Castle, and later in a portrait by Angeli.
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Princess Louise had no children, and after her death, her Diamond Daisy Brooches were inherited by, Princess Marina, Duchess of Kent, the widow of her great-nephew, Prince George, Duke of Kent, along with other jewels like the Princess Louise’s Emerald Brooch and probably the Kent Festoon Tiara. In the 1940s and 1950s, Princess Marina usually wore the Diamond Daisy Brooches in a traditional form, pinned on her bodice.
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In 1953, the Duchess loaned the large Daisy Brooch to her daughter, Princess Alexandra, for the Coronation of her cousin, Queen Elizabeth II, in 1953, after which she was photographed by Cecil Beaton, also wearing her Pearl and Diamond Necklace.
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Later, Princess Marina wore Princess Louise’s Diamond Daisy Brooches a with one of the Vladimir Pearls as a pendant, while also sometimes pinning one of the Diamond Daisies to her hats or used of of the Diamond Daisies as the clasp of a pearl choker.
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After Princess Marina’s death in 1968, Princess Louise’s Diamond Daisy Brooches were inherited by her younger son, Prince Michael of Kent, and after his marriage to Baroness Marie Christine von Reibnitz in 1978, the Diamond Daisies soon began to be worn by the glamorous Princess Michael, who usually wore the two smaller Diamond Daisies as Earrings, while the larger Diamond Daisy was worn was a Brooch or on a velvet choker.
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Princess Michael notably wore Princess Louise’s Diamond Daisy Brooches for a portrait with the Kent Festoon Tiara, and by the 1990s, the Diamond Daisies were set into a larger, more elaborate brooch, with an ornate diamond element and pearl fringes.
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More recently, Princess Michael wore Princess Louise’s Diamond Daisy Brooches set as a Tiara for the Wedding Ball of Prince Albert II and Princess Charlene of Monaco in Monte Carlo in 2011. There is no doubt we will continue to see these striking Royal Heirlooms for years to come!
Queen Victoria’s Emerald Tiara | Diamond Daisy Brooches | Emerald Brooch
