The magnificent Diamond Shamrock Tiara of the prominent Anglo-Irish Family was worn by a series of brilliant Marchionesses of Dufferin and Ava and is now on permanent display at the Victoria & Albert Museum in London.

The striking Diamond Coronet composed of large diamond shamrocks over a diamond base with pear-shaped pearls over diamond floral clusters, the Tiara was commissioned in the 1860s around the time of the marriage of the 5th Baron Dufferin and Claneboye, later the 1st Marquess, to Hariot Georgina Rowan-Hamilton in 1862.

The the first Marchioness of Dufferin and Ava wore the striking Diamond Shamrock Tiara on numerous occasions as the Viceregal-Consort of Canada and the Vicereine of India, as well as when the Marquess was appointed Ambassador to the Russian Court, the Ottoman Empire, and France.

By the 1930s, the Marchioness of Dufferin had passed along the Diamond Shamrock Tiara to her granddaughter-in-law, Maureen Guinness, the 4th Marchioness of Dufferin and Ava who often wore the Tiara for State Openings of Parliament as well as the Coronation of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth in 1937.

After being widowed in 1945, and remarrying twice, the 4th Marchioness, who became the first woman to sit on the board of the Guinness Brewery in 1949, continued to wear the Diamond Shamrock Tiara at Society Balls and Galas through the following decades at the centre of British Society, as her granddaughter recalled:

At my mother’s coming-out ball, attended by Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret, my grandmother ‘overserved’ herself champagne and slipped on the dancefloor, cracking the priceless shamrock-shaped family tiara. She never drank again.

When the 5th and last Marquess of Dufferin and Ava and his fourth cousin, Lindy Guinness, at Westminster Abbey in 1964, the new Marchioness of Dufferin and Ava wore the Diamond Shamrock Tiara:

The bride wore a dress of heavy white gabardine designed by John Cavanagh. It had a bodice molded to a slightly raised waistline, a narrow roll collar and a princess line skirt flowing to a 15-foot court train held at the shoulders with small tailored bows. The bride’s veil of tulle was attached to the Dufferin and Ava shamrock tiara.

The Dowager Marchioness continued to wear the Diamond Shamrock Tiara quite frequently until her passing in 1998, most notably for her annual ‘tiara party’.

Even in her nineties she was still throwing lively annual dinner parties for the Queen Mother at her home in Knightsbridge, at which the likes of Sir Alec Guinness and Barry Humphries could be found. Indeed, in later life the marchioness – the model for Osbert Lanchester’s Maudie Littlehampton – appeared also to have inspired Dame Edna.

The 5th Marquess, who was homosexual, and Marchioness threw popular parties at their homes in London and Northern Ireland, and on his death, in 1988, the title became extinct. The last Lady Dufferin inherited the Family Seat, Clandeboye in Northern Ireland, and became an artist, conservationist and businesswoman. The late Marchioness loaned the Diamond Shamrock Tiara to the permanent collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, where it remains on display today!

Dufferin and Ava Shamrock Tiara

Devonshire Diamond Palmette Tiara

Devonshire Diamond Tiara

Devonshire Diamond Rivière

Devonshire Parure

Ruby Clasp

Craven Brooch

Insect Brooches

Devonshire Tiara

Devonshire Diamond Rivière

Ruby Clasp

Wellington Tiara

Diamond Floral Tiara

Diamond Earrings

Diamond Tassel Earrings

Von Preussen Tiara

Strawberry Leaf Coronet

Diamond Tiara

Foliate Tiara

Buccleuch Diamond Belt Tiara

Buccleuch Emerald Tiara

Buccleuch Mayflower Tiara

Buccleuch Turquoise Tiara

Buccleuch Pearl and Diamond Tiara

Bagration Spinel Tiara

Rosebery Tiara

 Diamond Necklace

Westminster Myrtle Wreath Tiara

Diamond Fringe Tiara

Duchess of Buccleuch’s Tiaras

Rutland Tiara

Northumberland Tiara

Duchess of Sutherland’s Tiara

Duchess of Bedford’s Tiaras

Marlborough Tiara

Portland Tiara

Duchess of Norfolk’s Sapphire Necklace

Rutland Tiara

Argyll Tiara

Manchester Tiara

Dufferin Tiara

Bath Tiara

Milford Haven Ruby Kokoshnik 

Londonderry Tiara

Londonderry Amethyst Parure

Londonderry Pearl Parure

Londonderry Turquoise Parure

Londonderry Diamond Stomacher

Londonderry Emerald Parure

Beauchamp Tiara

Empress Eugénie’s Diamond Bow Brooch

The Girls of Great Britain and Ireland Tiara

Vladimir Tiara

Queen Alexandra’s Kokoshnik Tiara

Belgian Sapphire Tiara

Burmese Ruby Tiara

Brazilian Aquamarine Tiara

Queen Mary’s Fringe Tiara

Queen Mary’s Lover’s Knot Tiara

Queen Victoria’s Oriental Circlet Tiara

Belonging to the Anglo-Irish Marquess Dufferin and Ava, the Dufferin Tiara was commissioned in the 1860s for the wife of the first Marquess, and has subsequently been worn by Marchionesses of Dufferin at grand events. It is composed of large diamond shamrocks over a diamond base with pear-shaped pearls over diamond floral clusters.

Harriet Hamilton-Temple-Blackwood, the first Marchioness, was the wife of the first Marquess of Dufferin and Ava, who was Viceroy of India and Governor General of Canada in the 1870s, and wore the tiara at many occasions during the course of her viceregal life, at grand receptions, balls, and for official portraits. The first Marchioness is best known for her charity work for women in British India, and gives her name to the famous Lady Dufferin Hospital in Karachi.

Embed from Getty ImagesEmbed from Getty Images

Embed from Getty Images

 The next Lady Dufferin to be pictured in the Tiara was Maureen Guinness, the 4th Marchioness, who was a fascinating figure, who came from the famous Irish family, got widowed during WWII, and threw famous parties until her death in 1996. One of her daughters was the famous Lady Caroline Blackwood, the first wife of artist Lucien Freud. The 4th Marchioness wore the tiara throughout her life: at the Coronation of 1937, State Openings of Parliament, and at her infamous parties, though her granddaughter also recalled an incident:

At my mother’s coming-out ball, attended by Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret, my grandmother ‘overserved’ herself champagne and slipped on the dancefloor, cracking the priceless shamrock-shaped family tiara. She never drank again.

Embed from Getty Images

Maureen loaned the Tiara to her daughter-in-law, Lindy Guinness, for the latter’s wedding in 1964. Lindy, who also hailed from the Dukes of Rutland, married Sheridan, the 5th Marquess, who was homosexual. They couple had no children, threw popular parties at their homes in London and Northern Ireland, and on his death, in 1988, the title became extinct. The last Lady Dufferin inherited the Family Seat, Clandeboye in Northern Ireland, and became an artist, conservationist and businesswoman.

Today, the Dufferin Tiara is loaned to the Victoria and Albert Museum in London by Lindy, Marchioness of Dufferin and Ava. It is unclear who will inherit the piece on her death, as there are no direct heirs of the 5th Marquess, or of Lindy herself. UPDATE– After the death of the last Marchioness, the Clandeboye Estate has become a foundation for conservation and education and it it quite likely that that Tiara will belong to that Foundation.

For more information, check out:

A project done on this Tiara

“We are featured in Twinkl’s Museums Campaign. Twinkl also have a wide variety of museum-related resources on their site”