A dazzling legacy – how Kate keeps Queen Elizabeth’s memory alive through the late monarch’s world-beating collection of jewellery

The late monarch, who would have celebrated her 98th birthday tomorrow, possessed an astonishing depth and variety of pieces gathered over the years through purchases, gifts and inheritance.

She frequently lent items to Catherine, the Princess of Wales, for special occasions, another sign of the strong bond between the while the Queen was still alive.

Since Elizabeth’s death, Kate has continued to honour the monarch by wearing some of her most cherished treasures

Queen Elizabeth offered the world its first glimpse of the emerald demi-parure in 1989.

Arriving for dinner at Claridge’s, she was spotted wearing the tassel necklace, paired with complementary jewels from the royal vaults.

Since the dinner took place during a state visit of the President of the United Arab Emirates, Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, it is thought that Elizabeth’s necklace had been a gift from the Sheikh.

The necklace formed part of a four-piece suite that also included a pair of earrings, a bracelet and a ring.

The Princess of Wales wore the earrings and bracelet for a dinner in 2022, hosted by Patrick Allen, the Governor General of Jamaica, at King’s House in Kingston.

The event was scheduled during a royal tour of the Caribbean, timed to celebrate the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee.

The pair married at St George’s Chapel, Windsor, in 1863, and the then Prince of Wales presented Alexandra with a parure of diamonds and pearls.

In addition to the opulent necklace, the collection consisted of pearl and diamond cluster earrings, a brooch with a detachable pendant and a diamond tiara.

The tiara, later known as the Rundell Tiara, was the only piece that Alexandra did not wear on her wedding day.

Following the Queen’s death in 1925, the headpiece was passed down to her daughter, Princess Victoria, but its fate remains uncertain.

The other accessories were inherited by Queen Mary, Alexandra’s daughter-in-law, who gifted the necklace to the Queen Mother.

It became one of her most-loved pieces of jewellery; she even wore it for her daughter’s wedding at Westminster Abbey.

The necklace, earrings and brooch were inherited by Queen Elizabeth, who wore them for evening events.

More recently, Kate selected the necklace for a state banquet with King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands and Queen Maxima at Buckingham Palace in 2018