The Scarab Brooch
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The Prince Albert Brooch
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The Prince Albert Brooch carries a legacy dating back to Queen Victoria’s reign. The gold-set sapphire and diamond piece was given to Victoria by her husband-to-be, Prince Albert, on the day before their nuptials; she then decided to wear it on her wedding gown.
In part because of its historical significance, the Court Jeweller notes, Victoria designated the brooch as an heirloom of the crown in her will—meaning that each subsequent reigning monarch would inherit it. All five queens and queen consorts since have worn it.
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The Centenary Rose Brooch
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Queen Elizabeth commissioned this brooch as a 100th birthday present for the Queen Mother, and it is framed by 100 diamonds—hence the “centenary” in its name. Collins and Sons made the piece, which features a hand-painted Queen Elizabeth Grandiflora Rose—a flower bred for the Queen’s 1953 coronation—on rock crystal. The Queen also wore this brooch for her 2002 Christmas broadcast, which took place nine months after her mother’s death.
The Flower Basket Brooch
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Elizabeth’s parents gave her the Flower Basket Brooch in 1948 to celebrate the birth of her first child and heir, then-Prince Charles. She subsequently wore it in her first official portrait with the newborn. Decades later, she wore the piece to the christening of Charles’s first grandchild, Prince George; she also chose it for that year’s Christmas address, underscoring the continuing line of succession.
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The New Zealand Silver Fern Brooch
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This New Zealand Silver Fern Brooch was given to the Queen by the Mayor of Auckland’s wife, Lady Allum, back in the 1950s. It was crafted as a Christmas present from “the women of Auckland,” and is designed in the shape of a fern, one of New Zealand’s emblems. Other senior royals have also worn this piece when visiting New Zealand or attending events with a tie to the country.
The Duchy of Lancaster Brooch
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Queen Elizabeth held another, curious title: the Duke of Lancaster. Ever since 1399, the monarch has held this title—and regardless of the current reigning monarch’s gender, they’re always known as the Duke of Lancaster, not the Duchess. Today, the Duchy serves as a key source of income for the royal family. This brooch mimics the Duchy’s coat of arms, and the Queen usually wore it when visiting Lancaster.
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The Maple Leaf Brooch
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Like the New Zealand Silver Fern Brooch, which the Queen wears for New Zealand-centric occasions, the Maple Leaf Brooch helps the monarch subtly pay tribute to Canada.
The diamond, platinum-set piece was first made for the Queen Mother as a gift from King George VI ahead of their state visit to Canada. Since then, Kate Middleton and Queen Camilla have also been seen wearing the brooch bearing the national symbol of Canada.
The Braemar Feather Brooch
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The Braemar Royal Highland Society gave this feather-inspired piece to the Queen in 2002 in celebration of her Golden Jubilee. It mimics the feather of an eagle, one of Scotland’s native birds. The Queen wore it often over the years to the Braemar Gathering, a storied highland games competition.
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The Coral Rose Brooch
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The Order of Liberation gave this piece to the Queen in 1990, to mark the 50th anniversary of Charles de Gaulle’s famous “Appeal of 18 June,” speech that he delivered after arriving in London on June 18, 1940. That was also the day Winston Churchill gave his “Finest Hour” address.
The Queen rarely wore the Coral Rose Brooch, but when she did, it was often for a France-related event. Memorably, she chose it during a 2004 trip to Paris, which marked the centenary of the Entente Cordiale, a series of agreements that improved foreign relations between the UK and France.
The Chelsea Iris Brooch
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Famously, one of Queen Elizabeth’s favorite events each year was always the Chelsea Flower Show, put on every year by the Royal Horticultural Society. The RHS bestowed this piece on the Queen, their royal patron, to mark her Diamond Jubilee. Its shape is taken from that of the Iris Unguicularis, a flower associated with the show. The Queen frequently wore the Chelsea Irish Brooch when visiting the Show.
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The Cambridge Emerald Cluster Brooch
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This brooch has been in the family for more than 200 years, going back to Princess Mary Adelaide, Duchess of Teck. After her death, she left them to her son, Prince Francis. But, according to the Court Jeweller, he “infamously bequeathed the jewels to his married mistress, the Countess of Kilmorey, when he died in 1910.” Queen Mary later reached out and bought them back, and they’ve belonged to the royal family ever since. Here, the Queen is seen wearing the emerald brooch at an event promoting the 2012 London Olympics in October 2005.
The Jardine Star Brooch
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This one was left to Queen Elizabeth in 1981 by a mysterious Lady Jardine, but no one seems to know quite who Lady Jardine is. Regardless, Elizabeth wore the eight-pointed, symmetrical brooch many times, including for the monarch’s traditional Christmas address to the nation from Buckingham Palace in 2017.
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Queen Mary’s Richmond Brooch
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The Cullinan V Diamond Brooch
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According to the Royal Collection Trust, it was “originally worn by Queen Mary as part of the suite of jewelry made for the Delhi Durbar in 1911.” It can actually be worn a few different ways, including being pinned as a brooch or affixed to a tiara. (Queen Camilla used this one on her coronation crown in place of the controversial Koh-i-Noor diamond.) Queen Elizabeth wore the heart-shaped, 18.8-carat diamond brooch many times over the years, including at Princess Eugenie’s wedding to Jack Brooksbank in 2018.
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The Diamond Thistle Brooch
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Also inherited from Queen Mary, this diamond brooch depicting one of Scotland’s national symbols passed to her granddaughter, Queen Elizabeth. However, she didn’t actually wear it in public until 2010, when she was photographed at Holyroodhouse for a portrait intended for Scottish Parliament. Queen Elizabeth then continued to wear the brooch on visits to Scotland over the next several years, including for the opening of Scottish Parliament in 2021, as seen here.
Chloe is a news writer for townandcountrymag.com, where she covers royal news, from the latest additions to Meghan Markle’s staff to Queen Elizabeth’s monochrome fashions; she also writes About culture, often dissecting TV shows like The Marvelous Mrs Maisel and Killing Eve.
Rachel King (she/her) is a news writer at Town & Country. Before joining T&C, she spent nearly a decade as an editor at Fortune. Her work covering travel and lifestyle has appeared in Forbes, Observer, Robb Report, Cruise Critic, and Cool Hunting, among others. Originally from San Francisco, she lives in New York with her wife, their daughter, and a precocious labradoodle. Follow her on Instagram at @rk.passport.
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