Kate Middleton’s Unexpected Tiara Brought Out a Royal Heirloom for the First Time in 100 Years

Kate Middleton, the Princess of Wales, turned heads in November 2023 when she unveiled a dazzling piece of royal history: the Strathmore Rose Tiara. Worn at the Buckingham Palace state banquet honoring the visit of South Korea’s President Yoon Suk Yeol and First Lady Kim Keon Hee, the glittering headpiece marked the first time in nearly a century that the tiara had been seen in public.

The event drew widespread admiration from royal watchers, as Kate became only the second person ever to publicly wear the tiara. The Strathmore Rose also joined a small, distinguished lineup — just the fourth tiara she has worn during her years as a senior royal.

Originally belonging to Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, the tiara features five diamond-encrusted roses arranged delicately across a floral band. It was a wedding gift from her father, the Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne, presented when she married the future King George VI in 1923. The Queen Mother famously wore it for a series of portraits early in her marriage, though it had not been photographed on her since the 1930s.

Even Queen Elizabeth II never donned the unique piece throughout her long reign, adding to the sense of history when Princess Kate chose it for the state dinner.

The Princess’s decision to wear the heirloom was widely interpreted as a heartfelt tribute to King Charles III, who shared a close bond with his grandmother, the late Queen Mother. The gesture also reinforced the enduring link between Kate and the King, symbolizing continuity within the modern monarchy.

Royal jewelry historian Lauren Kiehna, author of The Court Jeweller blog, explained that Kate’s choice carried deep significance. “Kate has always signaled that she’d like to emulate the Queen Mother’s royal role, and wearing her jewels is an important symbol of that continuity,” Kiehna said. “It’s fitting that Kate — likely with some assistance from King Charles — would choose to wear the tiara exactly a hundred years after the Queen Mother originally received it. The piece is an antique that wasn’t fashionable for many decades, but many jewels once considered fussy or unstylish have now been embraced again.”

Fashion expert Bethan Holt, fashion director at The Daily Telegraph, described the tiara as a “lost treasure” finally restored to the public eye. “It’s lovely, as the King was so close to the Queen Mother, and knowing that one of her most precious pieces of jewelry is being worn by his daughter-in-law gives a really emotional tie between generations,” Holt observed. “It has been said that Kate has looked to the Queen Mother for inspiration in how she conducts herself, so wearing that tiara in such a public moment is deeply significant. If there was anyone to bring that tiara back into the spotlight, it was Kate — she was the woman to wear it and carry it forward.”