Connaught Sapphire Brooch

At some very special daytime events, Crown Princess Mary of Denmark wears a beautiful heirloom sapphire and diamond brooch, which has a long royal history and can be traced back for five generations.

Featuring a large faceted sapphire surrounded by diamonds, with swags of pearls suspended from the main element and a floral diamond and pearl drop, the Connaught Sapphire Brooch was a wedding gift to Princess Louise Margaret of Prussia when she married Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught, third son of Queen Victoria, in 1879 from a Colonel Stannerly. At the time, the Washington Post described it as “a breast pin, with a sapphire set in diamonds.” The Duchess of Connaught wasn’t photographed with the brooch, neither was her daughter Crown Princess Margaret of Sweden, who added the pearl swags. After her death in 1920, the sapphire brooch was inherited by her only daughter, who became Queen Ingrid of Denmark.

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Queen Ingrid reserved the Connaught Sapphire Brooch for the most special occasions, wearing her grandmother’s brooch at the engagement photocalls of her daughters Queen Margrethe of Denmark, and Queen Anne Marie of Greece, and for portraits.

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Queen Ingrid gave the Connaught Sapphire Brooch to her eldest daughter, Queen Margrethe during her lifetime. Queen Margrethe wore the brooch rarely, most notably at the Christening of her eldest grandson, Prince Nikolai, in 1999 and during the Japanese State Visit to Denmark.

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In 2006, Queen Margrethe gave the brooch to her daughter-in-law, Crown Princess Mary, to mark the birth of her eldest son, Prince Christian. The Crown Princess first wore the brooch at the Christening of Prince Christian, and has also worn it sparingly like her mother- & grandmother-in-law. She wore it at the christening of her ‘twins’, Prince Vincent and Princess Isabella, in 2011, at the Opening of Parliament last October, and in the Documentary, De Kongelige Juveler, when she said;

Some people learn history through wars or famous people, but jewelry is just as good a possibility to learn history. It shows how the families have married through the generations. And it doesn’t only talk about lineage, but it also relates to personal events in families. For example, we know that this brooch has always been worn for family-related events. Except that now I have it, and I tend to wear it a little bit more generally.”

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For more information, check out:

The Court Jeweller

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