Today marks the 110th Anniversary of the Birth of Princess Sophie of Greece and Hannover, who was born on this day in 1914! The sister of the late Duke of Edinburgh, Princess Sophie was married to Prince Christoph of Hesse and after his untimely death during the Second World War, married Prince George William of Hanover, being a constant presence at Greek, British, and German Royal events throughout the 20th century, so we are featuring her heirloom Hesse Emerald Cross!
Emerald Laurel Wreath Tiara | Hesse Emerald Tiara | Hesse Amethyst Tiara | Hesse Fleur-de-Lys Tiara | Hesse Emerald Brooch | Hesse Emerald Cross | Köchert Diamond Devant-de-Corsage
The striking antique emerald and diamond cross originally dates to 1830, and belonged to Princess Elisabeth of Prussia, Princess Charles of Hesse and by Rhine.
Princess Elisabeth gave the Emerald Cross, along with the Emerald Brooch and a pair of earrings, to her granddaughter, Princess Victoria of Hesse, when she married Prince Louis of Battenberg, later Marques of Milford Haven, in 1884, a year before her own death. The Emerald Suite seems to have been one of the few jewels that Princess Victoria did not take on a trip to visit her sisters, Tsarina Alexandra Feodorovna and Grand Duchess Elizabeth Feodorovna, in Russia in 1914, when the First World War broke out and she left her jewels in Russia for safekeeping, which were lost during the Russian Revolution.
The Hesse Emerald Cross and Brooch were among the jewels given by Princess Victoria to her younger daughter, Lady Louise Mountbatten, when she married Crown Prince Gustaf Adolf of Sweden in 1923.
Crown Princess Louise first wore the Emerald Cross for a series of portraits taken soon after her marriage, paired with her Diamond Tiara, a wedding gift from her brother and sister-in-law, Lord and Lady Mountbatten.
Crown Princess Louise notably wore the Emerald Brooch and Emerald Cross with Queen Sofia’s Nine Prong Tiara for an Official Portrait taken in the late 1920s.
Crown Princess Louise also wore the Hesse Emerald Cross with the Diamond Tiara for a Gala in the early 1940s.
In 1946, Crown Princess Louise’s widowed niece, Princess Sophie of Greece, daughter of Prince Andrew of Greece and Princess Alice of Battenberg and widow of Prince Christoph of Hesse, was remarrying to Prince George William of Hanover, son of the Duke of Brunswick and Princess Victoria Louise of Prussia. Soon after the Second World War, the Hesse Family Jewels were buried at the family home, Schloss Friedrichshof, which was requisitioned to be used as a club by American Soldiers, who then discovered and stole the jewels, with the theft not revealed until Princess Sophie was preparing for her second marriage. To compensate for the loss of her niece’s jewels, the childless Queen Louise presented her with the Hesse Emerald Brooch and the Emerald Cross for the wedding, which happened within the lifetime of Princess Victoria.
Princess Sophie also received Hanover Emerald Laurel Wreath Tiara as a wedding gift from her mother-in-law, Princess Victoria Louise, the Duchess of Brunswick, which made a splendid pairing with the Hesse Emerald Brooch and Cross, which were notably worn together for the Coronation of her sister-in-law, Queen Elizabeth II in 1953.
Princess Sophie also wore the Hesse Emerald Cross for the Christening of Prince Ludwig Rudolph of Hanover in 1956.
Princess Sophie wore the Hesse Emerald Cross and Brooch for the Wedding of her cousin, Lady Pamela Mountbatten, in 1960.
The following year, the Emerald Cross was worn with the Hanover Emerald Laurel Wreath Tiara for the 60th Birthday Banquet for her cousin, King Paul of Greece, at the Royal Palace of Athens in 1961.
Princess Sophie also wore the Hesse Emerald Cross with her Köchert Diamond Devant-de-Corsage for the Wedding of Prince Juan Carlos of Spain and her niece, Princess Sophia of Greece, in 1962.
In the 1980s, the Hanover Emerald Laurel Wreath Tiara was sold to Archduchess Francesca von Habsburg while the Hesse Emerald Brooch was sold to Princess Gloria von Thurn and Taxis, but the ultimate fate of the Hesse Emerald Cross is unknown!
Emerald Laurel Wreath Tiara | Hesse Emerald Tiara | Hesse Amethyst Tiara | Hesse Fleur-de-Lys Tiara | Hesse Emerald Brooch | Hesse Emerald Cross | Köchert Diamond Devant-de-Corsage
