The Duke and Duchess of Gloucester
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The star of the show? The Queen’s scintillating Van Cleef & Arpels serpent necklace – a piece that has long had a home in Camilla’s jewellery box and long been something of a mystery to royal watchers everywhere. Designed in the shape of a snake curled around the wearer’s neck, the piece is adorned with diamonds and features two rubies where the serpent’s eyes would be. The snake is often considered to be a symbol of everlasting love – Queen Victoria’s engagement ring was crafted to look like a snake. A fitting piece of symbolism, perhaps, considering the turbulent love story of Camilla and King Charles. The provenance of the necklace remains unconfirmed, but The Royal Watcher blog wonders whether it might have been a present from the then-Prince of Wales, a testament to the couple’s enduring romance.
Queen Camilla made a speech as the Colonel-in-Chief The Rifles and Royal Colonel 4th Battalion The Ranger Regiment
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Another twist in the tale? The discovery of a Fabérge cigarette case, featuring an Art Deco-style diamond-encrusted snake biting the end of its tail. The piece was gifted to King Edward VII by his mistress, the socialite Alice Keppel, while he was still married to Queen Alexandra. The ouroboros design, like Camilla’s snake necklace, symbolises enduring love. Thrillingly, history has somewhat repeated itself: Alice Keppel’s great-granddaughter is none other than Queen Camilla, who was, of course, in a relationship with Prince Charles when he was married to Princess Diana. Indeed, rumour has it that Keppel’s dalliance with King Edward made for quite the icebreaker when a young Camilla first met the future King, on a polo field in the 70s. ‘My great-grandmother was your great-great-grandfather’s mistress,’ she is said to have joked. ‘So how about it?’ Considering the pair are now married, ruling over roughly 2.6 billion people, she could have done worse.