Countess Marianne Bernadotte’s Tiara

Happy Birthday to Countess Marianne Bernadotte of Wisborg, Princess Bernadotte, who turns 95 today! The last surviving aunt of King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden, Queen Margrethe II of Denmark, and Queen Anne-Marie of Greece, Countess Marianne is a beloved member of the Swedish Royal Family, and has been attending royal events for almost six decades. To mark her birthday, we are taking a look at her Pearl and Diamond Tiara!

Countess Marianne Bernadotte’s Tiara | King Edward VII Ruby Tiara

Featuring large Pearls in Diamond waves and scrolls, Countess Marianne Bernadotte’s Tiara is her personal property and not a royal heirloom, similar to her sister-in-law, Countess Gunnila Bernadotte, who also had her own tiara. The Tiara reportedly came from her first mother-in-law, the mother of her first husband, Gabriel Tchang, who was the wife of the Chinese Ambassador to Sweden.

In 1961, after her marriage to Count Sigvard Bernadotte of Wisborg, the second son of King Gustav VI Adolf of Sweden and Princess Margaret of Connaught, Countess Marianne frequently wore the Tiara at royal events, including State Banquets and King Carl XVI Gustaf’s Wedding Gala in 1976.

While Count Sigvard had inherited the King Edward VII Ruby Tiara from his late mother, he had controversially given/sold it to his father, the King, which caused a lot of controversy, and was left to Sigvard’s son Count Michael, who sold it King Carl XVI Gustaf. However, despite the King and Queen loaning the Tiara to Countess Marianne, Count Sigvard still objected to the legality of the transaction, and openly protested when the Tiara was worn, causing it to be put away for a long time. Count Sigvard also harboured a grudge against her father and later nephew for not reinstating his royal title, which was lost after his first marriage to a commoner.

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Despite her husband’s difficult relationship, Countess Marianne Bernadotte continues to be a hard-working and beloved member of the Swedish Royal Family, wearing her Tiara at the Wedding of Crown Princess Victoria and the Wedding of Prince Carl Philip as well as a Nobel Prize Banquet in recent years. There is no doubt we will continue to see the Tiara for years to come.

Countess Marianne Bernadotte’s Tiara | King Edward VII Ruby Tiara

2 thoughts on “Countess Marianne Bernadotte’s Tiara

  1. Princess Marianne Bernadotte, Countess of Wisborg, (as her correct title actually reads according to Luxembourg Government documents released in recent years) suffered a lot from the bullying her late husband was subjected to by his father and nephew, 2 surprisingly discourteous kings in this regard. Sigvard never asked to be reinstated as a royal Prince of Sweden, only that his legitimate 1951 title of Prince Sigvard Bernadotte, Count of Wisborg, in the nobility (not royalty) of Luxembourg be recognized. See Wikipedia’s well-referenced article “Prince Bernadotte”.

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