Queen Victoria’s Small Diamond Crown is set to go on display in 2027

Presale tickets have gone live for the Royal Collection Trust’s 2027 exhibition, ‘Royal Jewellery: From Coronations to Keepsakes’

Exploring 500 years of royal jewellery, the exhibition will feature several personal pieces that once belonged to Queen Victoria, including her small diamond crown.

Following Prince Albert’s death in 1861, Queen Victoria plummeted into a deep state of mourning, which led to her famously wearing black for the rest of her life. As part of her grief, Victoria stopped wearing grand pieces of jewellery, such as the Imperial State Crown and the King George IV Diadem (the Diadem will also be featuring in the exhibition). However, she still wanted to show her status as monarch, so in May 1870 commissioned court jeweller, R&S Garrard and Co. to create a small diamond crown to be worn on top of either her widow’s cap or veil.

The design of the crown is similar to Queen Charlotte’s Nuptial Crown, which Victoria had worn frequently throughout her early reign before returning it to Hannover in 1858. Like the original, the 1870 crown consists of four cross-pattée and four fleur-de-lis, which rise from a diamond-set band. What makes the small crown particularly iconic are the four detachable arches joined to a monde and cross.

In total, the crown consists of 1,187 brilliant, rose and mixed-cut diamonds. Many of the diamonds are thought to have been recycled from Queen Victoria’s ornamental fringe (now a much smaller Fringe Brooch), while others are thought to have been a gift from the Sultan of Turkey, Abdul Mejîd, in May 1856, as a thank you for Britains support during the Crimean War.

Queen Victoria wore the crown for the first time to the State Opening of Parliament, on 9th February 1871. In her journal, she wrote that she “wore a dress trimmed with ermine & my new small diamond crown over a veil”.

Measuring just 9cm across and 10cm in height, the crown weighed no more than 140 grams! Despite its heaviness, the crown quickly became one of Victoria’s favourite pieces and was often worn to family, official and state events. The crown also appeared on coins, in official portraits and photographs, making it a symbol of her reign.

After her death in 1901, the crown was placed on Queen Victoria’s coffin while her body lay in state at Osborne House. It then travelled alongside her during her procession back to Windsor, ready for her funeral at St George’s Chapel. Like many other items in Victoria’s collection, the piece was given to the crown to be worn by future Queens and Queen Consorts. First to inherit the piece was Queen Alexandra, who wore it to the State Opening of Parliament. It was then passed onto her daughter-in-law, Queen Mary in 1919, although there is no record of her wearing it.

In 1937 King George IV, had the crown placed on display in the Tower of London and hasn’t been worn since. However, next year (2027) the crown will feature amongst 500 years worth of royal jewellery at the King’s Gallery in London.

The exhibition will be running from 25th June 2027 until 19th March 2028, with presale tickets available from today (28th October) and general sale going live on 3rd November. I’ve already got my tickets booked. Will you be visiting the exhibition?

Visit the Royal Collection Trust website for more information

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