Happy Birthday to Princess Beatrix of The Netherlands, who turns 83 today! To mark the Birthday of the former Queen Regnant, we are featuring the Dutch Laurel Wreath Tiara, which was given as an 18th Birthday Gift on this day 55 years ago!
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Composed of a Diamond Laurel Wreath, the Tiara dates from the early 19th century and could either originate from Princess Louise of Orange-Nassau, sister of King Wilhelm I, or be an antique piece that was acquired by the Dutch Royal Family around the then Crown Princess Beatrix’s 18th Birthday in 1956, when it first appeared in public. her first Tiara, Crown Princess Beatrix wore her Laurel Wreath Tiara quite often in the 1950s and 1960s, with notable appearences including the British State Visit to the Netherlands in1958 and a Court Ball at the Royal Palace of Brussels.
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When Crown Princess Beatrix began to wear more pieces from the Dutch Royal Collection, the Laurel Wreath Tiara was often loaned to her sisters, particularly Princess Margriet, who wore it for Queen Juliana’s Silver Anniversary in 1962, and was the most frequent wearer of the Tiara through the 1960s, 70s, and 80s. The Laurel Wreath Tiara was also worn by her youngest sister, Princess Christina, for Queen Beatrix’s Abdication Dinner in 2013.
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The Laurel Wreath Tiara was worn by Laurentien Brinkhorst when she married Prince Constantijn of The Netherlands, Queen Beatrix’s youngest son, in 2001. In 2012, Queen Beatrix also loaned the Tiara to her niece, Princess Maria Carolina of Bourbon-Parma, wore for her wedding to Albert Brenninkmeijer. The Tiara was most recently worn by Princess Laurentien for the Argentine State Banquet in 2017. The Laurel Wreath Tiara is one of the few Tiaras in the Dutch Royal Collection that has not yet been worn by Queen Máxima, leading us to wonder if it may make another 18th Birthday gift to a Crown Princess when the Princess of Orange turns 18 later this year?
This Laurel Wreath tiara is one of the few of its kind that I like, another one being Queen Mathilde’s Laurel Wreath tiara given to her on the occasion of her wedding. I think it has to do with the fact that the middle part is either not obvious or decorated and filled in. I truly wonder when we’ll see a tiara on the Princess of Orange. I can only hope that it’ll be soon. Happy birthday to Queen Beatrix! I wish her joy!