Gloucester Diamond Earrings

Today marks the Anniversary of the Death of Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester, who passed away on this day in 2004, at the age of 102! The daughter of the fabulously wealthy Duke of Buccleuch who married the third son of King George V and Queen Mary, the Duchess was the longest-lived member of the Royal Family, and possessed a fabulous collection of jewellery, the highlight of which was the Gloucester Diamond Earrings!

When Queen Mary’s third son, Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester, married Lady Alice Montagu Douglas Scott in 1935, the bride received several spectacular wedding gifts, including the Gloucester Honeysuckle Tiara and Queen Mary’s Teck Turquoise Tiara and Parure, which went on display with the other wedding gifts. From her mother, the Duchess of Buccleuch, the bride received a pair of Diamond Earrings which are believed to be these spectacular antique Diamond Cluster Earrings.

In the early years of her marriage, Princess Alice was not regularly pictured wearing these earrings, with a notable exception at a Gala Performance in the late 1930s, with more regular appearances paired with her Diamond Necklace Tiara by the early 1950s, including for the Anglo-Danish Society Dinner in London in 1950 and the Royal School of Needlework Reception at St James’ Palace in 1951 as well as the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II in 1953.

Princess Alice often wore the Diamond Earrings with the Honeysuckle Tiara and the Iveagh Tiara in later years, like for the Iraqi State Visit to Britain in 1956, a Banquet at Nepalese Embassy in 1960, for the Japanese State Visit to Britain in 1971 the, Dutch State Visit to Britain in 1972, and the Silver Jubilee Gala at Covent Garden in 1977.

By the mid 1970s, Princess Alice had given her Diamond Earrings to her daughter-in-law, the current Duchess of Gloucester, who wore them for several Guildhall Banquets, the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester’s Anniversary Portraits in 1989, the Heads of State Banquet at the Guildhall in 1995, and the Wedding of Princess Alexandra of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg and Count Jefferson von Pfeil und Klein-Ellguth in 1995, the Queen and Duke of Edinburgh’s Golden Wedding Anniversary in 1997, the Order of St John 900th Anniversary in 1999, Princess Alexia’s Pre-Wedding Dinner in 1999, alongside several appearances at the State Opening of Parliament, with the Honeysuckle Tiara, the Cartier India Tiara, and the Iveagh Tiara.

The Diamond Earrings had become more frequently worn by the Duchess by the late 1990s, being worn for Queen Margrethe’s Banquet at the Natural History Museum in London in 2000, and at Guildhall Banquets during the Jordanian State Visit to Britain in 2001, the Norwegian Official Visit to Britain in 2005, and the French State Visit to Britain in 2008, as well as King Harald’s 70th Birthday Banquet in 2007.

More recently, the Diamond Earrings have been regularly favourites of the Duchess of Gloucester, being worn for the Guildhall Banquet in 2016, during the Spanish State Visit to Britain in 2017, the Dutch State Banquet at Buckingham Palace in 2018, at the American State Banquet in 2019, and the South African State Banquet at Buckingham Palace in 2022.

The most iconic recent appearance of the Diamond Earrings were earlier this year, when they were worn by the Duchess of Gloucester for the Coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla at Westminster Abbey. There is no doubt we will continue to see these spectacular Heirlooms worn for years to come!