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The Duchess of Gloucester is the unsung style hero of Commonwealth Day, as she sports a brooch with a dazzling family history
Birgitte, the Duchess of Gloucester, wore a brooch thought to belong to her mother-in-law, Princess Alice, as she joined King Charles and the Princess of Wales for their Commonwealth Day return to Westminster Abbey
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Birgitte, the Duchess of Gloucester and Prince Richard, the Duke of Gloucester, joined the Firm for a Commonwealth Day celebration at Westminster Abbey on Monday, 10 March
Samir HusseinThe Firm were out in full force for Commonwealth Day, with King Charles and Catherine, the Princess of Wales, marking their return to the festivities after their cancer treatments left them unable to attend the Westminster Abbey service last year. It was an opportunity for the royals to don their finest jewellery, and amid the dazzling diamonds and pearls, it was Birgitte, the Duchess of Gloucester, who caught the attention of royal watchers everywhere.
The Duchess, who was joined by her husband, the Duke of Gloucester, is known for her timeless approach to royal style, with her vast private collection of family heirlooms often a highlight of her diligent public duties. At Commonwealth Day on Monday, 10 March, the 78-year-old royal became something of an unsung style hero, with fans and followers quick to note how elegant the Duchess looked in her purple velvet dress and hat, as well as her brooches, string of pearls, and pearl earrings.
The Duchess of Gloucestrer wore pearls for the occassion, as well as a pair of diamond and ruby brooches that once belonged to her mother-in-law, Princess Alice
Samir HusseinThe Duchess is known for her timeless approach to royal style
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It was Birgitte’s brooches that truly stole the show at Westminster Abbey. A pair of clips adorned with diamonds and rubies, the two brooches are thought to have belonged to Birgitte’s mother-in-law, the late Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester. The aunt of Queen Elizabeth II, Princess Alice escaped Britain after her ‘pointless and boring’ society debut in 1919 to prospect for gold in Africa, smuggle herself into Afghanistan and work with the Red Cross during WWII. When she died on 29 October 2004 at the age of 102 (making her the oldest ever member of the royal family), the Princess gave £30,000 to 14 members of staff, including three butlers, three ladies-in-waiting, five gardeners, a private equerry and a secretary.
Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester, in the brooches during a Christmas party at Buckingham Palace in 1950
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And to her daughter-in-law, Birgitte, Princess Alice left an array of stunning family jewels. The brooches that the Duchess of Gloucester wore for Commonwealth Day were previously worn by Princess Alice at the Highland Show in 1936, where she paired them with an all-black ensemble as she mourned the death of her father-in-law, King George V.
Clip brooches are something of a signature style for the Duchess of Gloucester. She is perhaps most closely associated with the art deco diamond and rock crystal circle brooches from 1925. Birgitte has worn those pieces for a plethora of her royal engagements, including a concert at Laeken Castle in 2010, where she joined King Albert II and Queen Paola of Belgium.
Birgitte, the Duchess of Gloucester, joined Prince Richard, King Charles, Queen Camilla, Princess Anne, and the Prince and Princess of Wales
WPA Pool/Getty ImagesThe Duchess of Gloucester was not the only royal to use their jewellery as a subtle tribute to their mother during Commonwealth Day celebrations. Princess Anne, the Princess Royal, wore her stalactite brooch, one of the most sentimental jewels in her collection. Crafted from cascading diamonds and yellow gold, the brooch has been in the Princess Royal’s possession since 1973, when she was gifted it before her wedding to Captain Mark Philips by her mother, Queen Elizabeth II.
Princess Anne paired the piece with another of her classic royal re-wears, making her return to Westminster Abbey in a coat she wore to Commonwealth Day celebrations in 2023. Queen Camilla, too, opted for a recycled outfit – in what is becoming something of a trend among the British royals. Her Majesty was sporting a baby pink satin coat dress by Fiona Clare – recently granted Queen Camilla’s royal warrant in December. Queen Camilla paired the dress with a matching hat by legendary milliner Philip Treacy. Clearly a favourite look of the Queen’s, the dress and hat had previously been worn on Camilla’s trip to France with King Charles in 2023, when the royal pair met with President Emmanuel Macron.
King Charles and Queen Camilla lead the royal family for a procession through Westminster Abbey
Samir HusseinPrincess Anne, the Princess Royal, wore a stalactite brooch gifted to her on her wedding day by her mother, Queen Elizabeth II
Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty ImagesMaking the most headlines, of course, were the jewellery choices of the Princess of Wales. Catherine looked regal in red, opting for a Catherine Walker dress and Gina Foster hat. Her earrings, the Collingwood pearls, were a treasured favourite of her late mother-in-law, Princess Diana, who was offered them as a wedding present by the jewellery house that was beloved by the Spencer clan.
Princess Diana wore the earrings soon after her wedding, showcasing them at a dinner held at Claridge’s for King Khalid of Saudi Arabia in June 1981. The late Princess of Wales also chose the Collingwood pearls for a trip to watch Starlight Express in 1984 and paired them with Queen Mary’s Lover’s Knot tiara during a dinner at the British Embassy in Washington D.C, the day after her iconic dance with John Travolta in the White House.
The Princess of Wales made her return to Commonwealth Day celebrations, after cancer treatment left her unable to attend in 2024
Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty ImagesAs for Catherine’s necklace, the Princess chose the Garrard pearl choker, a piece previously owned by Queen Elizabeth II and crafted by Garrard from pearls reportedly gifted to the Queen by the Japanese government in the 1970s to mark her state visit to the nation.
The late Queen rarely wore the necklace, but fans caught a glimpse of the four strands of pearls during a visit to Bangladesh in 1983. Elizabeth II loaned the jewels to Princess Diana in 1982, when the late Princess of Wales welcomed Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands to a banquet at Buckingham Palace.
Kate Middleton has worn the choker to some of her most major royal engagements. In 2017, she chose it for a party held in honour of Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip’s diamond wedding anniversary, and in a truly poignant gesture, the then Duchess of Cambridge wore the pearls for Prince Philip’s funeral in April 2021.
The mother-of-three wore a pearl choker that once belonged to Queen Elizabeth, as well as a pair of earrings belonging to her late mother-in-law, Princess Diana
Samir HusseinThe Prince and Princess of Wales
Samir HusseinRoyal fans were also pleasantly surprised to see the Princess of Wales’s iconic sapphire engagement ring, which she has often swapped out for a more lightweight ring stack over the past year.
It is the same ring that King Charles gave to Princess Diana to commemorate their engagement, a 12-carat opal-cut sapphire (surrounded by 14 round-cut diamonds). After her untimely death, Diana’s engagement ring was passed down to her sons, and Prince William used it to propose to Catherine in Africa.
‘It's my mother's engagement ring, so I thought it was quite nice because obviously, she's not going to be around to share in any of the fun and excitement of all this,’ said the Prince during his engagement interview. ‘This is my way of keeping her sort of close to it all.’ He also told reporters of the emotional significance of the piece, explaining that: ‘It's very special to me. As Kate's very special to me now, it was right to put the two together.’
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