Khedive of Egypt Tiara

Today marks the centenary of the death of Crown Princess Margareta of Sweden, the grandmother of King Carl XVI Gustaf of SwedenQueen Margrethe II of Denmark, and Queen Anne Marie of Greece, who tragically died while pregnant with her sixth child. To mark the anniversary, we are taking a look at one of her most iconic jewels, the Khedive of Egypt Tiara.

In 1905, Prince Gustaf Adolf of Sweden married Princess Margaret of Connaught, a granddaughter of Queen Victoria, after meeting on a trip to Egypt, and the bride received this Cartier Wreath Scroll Tiara as a wedding gift from the Khedive of Egypt, a fitting gift to honour the beginning of their romance.

Crown Princess Margareta wore the Khedive of Egypt Tiara often during her few short years as a member of the Swedish Royal Family, even fixing it as a bodice ornament in one of her most iconic portraits. The Tiara was also worn in a series of other portraits, and even at the wedding of her only brother to the Duchess of Fife, with the Connaught Tiara as a necklace.

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After her untimely death, Crown Princess Margareta’s jewels were divided between her five surviving children and the Khedive of Egypt Tiara went to her only daughter, Princess Ingrid, who notably wore the piece in her 21st birthday portraits and later for numerous occasions around her wedding to the future King Frederik IX of Denmark. The Tiara remained in her procession throughout her years as Princess, Crown Princess, Queen, and Queen Mother, and was among the two Tiaras, the other being the Danish Ruby Parure, worn by Queen Ingrid up until her death in 2000.

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Queen Ingrid frequently loaned the Khedive of Egypt Tiara to her cousin, Princess Margaretha of Sweden and Denmark, and also loaned it to her niece, Princess Margaretha of Sweden for the future Queen Margrethe’s (both namesakes of their late grandmother) 18th Birthday in 1958.

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In 1964, Princess Anne-Marie was the first of Queen Ingrid’s daughters to wear the Khedive of Egypt Tiara Wedding of King Constantine II of Greece, followed by Crown Princess Margrethe in 1967, and Wedding of Princess Benedikte in 1968, along with their grandmother’s Irish lace veil. Princess Benedikte discussed this tradition in the ‘De Kongelige Juveler’ Documentary:

When my youngest sister, Anne-Marie, married, I think my mother thought it would be suitable to wear as a bride because it’s very pretty, light – it’s not a heavy one – and she was very young. It was suitable. And then, of course, because she had worn it, my eldest sister and I also were allowed to wear it. And of course it was a wonderful thing to wear one’s grandmother’s tiara with the history and all. It was lovely, very lovely.”

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Queen Ingrid also continued the family tradition with her granddaughters, first loaning the Khedive of Egypt Tiara to Princess Alexandra of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg for her first wedding to Count Jefferson von Pfeil und Klein-Ellguth in 1998, then to Princess Alexia of Greece in 1999, and the Tiara was also worn by Princess Nathalie of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg in 2011.

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After Queen Ingrid’s death, the Khedive of Egypt Tiara was inherited by her youngest daughter, Queen Anne-Marie of Greece (who had borrowed it for her grandfather, King Gustaf VI Adolf’s 90th Birthday in 1972), who, while she favours her Greek Tiaras for the most important occasions, has worn the Khedive quite often in recent years, with notable occasions including the Wedding of Crown Prince Haakon of Norway, Crown Prince Frederik’s Pre-Wedding Gala, the Wedding of Prince Joachim of Denmark, Queen Margrethe’s Ruby Jubilee Gala, Hereditary Grand Duke Guillaume’s Pre-Wedding Gala, and most recently, Crown Prince Frederik’s 50th Birthday Gala. I had originally timed this article to coincide with the originally scheduled Wedding of Princess Theodora of Greece this month, but there is not doubt we will see the Khedive of Egypt Tiara again soon.

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Greek Emerald Parure

Greek Ruby Parure

Khedive of Egypt Tiara

Antique Corsage Tiara

Pearl and Star Tiara

Diamond Stars

Aquamarine Pendant

Diamond Sautoir

Modern Diamond Necklace

Sapphire Necklace

Van Cleef & Arpels Ruby Necklace

Van Cleef & Arpels Suite

Diamond Earrings

Diamond Pendant

Emerald Pendant

Amethyst Brooch

Diamond Swan Brooch

Seed Pearl Brooch

Bow Brooch

Diamond Clip Brooches

Seed Pearl Brooch

Greek Royal Tiaras30 

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