Princess Anne's Famous Piece of Jewelry Could Make Another Appearance at Peter Phillips' Wedding
The diamond bandeau holds significant space in Princess Anne's heart since she inherited it from her late father, the Duke of Edinburgh.
Princess Anne is known for making a statement with her outfits, and she is set to celebrate her son, Peter Philips', wedding to Harriet Sperling. The couple plans to marry in All Saints Church in the Gloucestershire village of Kemble, Cirencester, UK. The ceremony will take place in the Cotswolds and is expected to be a private gathering of close relatives and friends rather than a large televised state occasion. Given the simplicity of the wedding, it is widely speculated that Sperling, the soon-to-be royal bride, may not wear a traditional wedding tiara on her special day. However, it would be surprising if Princess Anne offers her daughter-in-law the modern 'Meander Tiara,' which she last loaned to her daughter Zara Tindall for her wedding to Mike Tindall in 2011. “The Meander has a much cleaner, more architectural silhouette than some of the larger royal tiaras,” jeweler Nilesh Rakholia, the founder of Abelini, told InStyle. “That makes it feel surprisingly contemporary, especially for a wedding expected to be more understated.”
The diamond bandeau holds significant space in Princess Anne's heart since she inherited it from her late father, the Duke of Edinburgh. The piece is decorated with a Greek key pattern and honeysuckle patterns. As per Tatler, it belonged to her paternal grandmother, Princess Alice of Battenberg, and was given as a wedding gift by Prince Andrew of Greece and Denmark. The piece features a huge, brilliant-cut diamond encircled by a pavé laurel wreath in the center. It was first gifted to Queen Elizabeth in 1947 upon her marriage to Prince Phillip. However, she did not wear it and later passed it down to their daughter, Princess Anne, in the late 1960s. Anne has worn the tiara several times, including at the State Opening of Parliament in 1970 and the 1988 Guildhall Banquet.
Another one of Princess Royal's favorites is the 'Festoon Tiara,' which she had already loaned to her previous daughter-in-law, Autumn Kelly, in 2008. It was a gift from the World Wide Shipping Group in 1973, which Anne still cherishes. Rakholia explained that, similar to Kelly wearing the Festoon Tiara at her wedding to Phillips, it establishes a precedent for Princess Anne to open her jewelry vault for her current daughter-in-law, highlighting the importance of tiaras in family inclusion and celebration rather than status.
Philip does not hold a royal title nor is he a working royal. In the same vein, Sperling will not be granted a title if she marries into the royal family. Sperling, who was previously married and has a teenage daughter, also has that in common with Phillips, who divorced Kelly in 2021 and has two daughters. "What makes this wedding particularly interesting is that it is also a second marriage for both Peter and Harriet," Rakholia noted, before adding, "Historically, second royal weddings tend to lean much more understated in their choice of jewelry, with less emphasis on overt bridal grandeur." Hence, it is a matter of days for royal fans to witness Sperling adorning one of Princess Anne's royal tiaras or just keep her style simple with an elegant headpiece.
