Great Britain's Precious Crowns: Little-Known Facts and Unexpected Stories

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

In the period from 1649 to 1660, when a republic was proclaimed in England, all royal regalia and other jewelry were either melted down or stolen. But the republic did not last long, it was replaced by the monarchy again, and the regalia of royal power were created anew. Today, these magnificent treasures are stored in London, in the famous Tower of London, and amaze with their magnificence.

Crown of St. Edward (1661)

This crown was restored under Charles II. It is used for the coronation, which takes place at Westminster Cathedral. The crown is very beautiful, but heavy, its weight is more than two kilograms. For this reason, Queen Victoria, the great-grandmother of the current queen, for whom she was very difficult, ordered a new crown, lighter, to be made, with which she was crowned in 1838. However, since 1911, the crown of St. Edward was again used in the coronation ceremony.

Crown of the British Empire (1837)

This magnificent crown was made in 1837 for Queen Victoria. But seven years later, one of the court dukes accidentally dropped the crown, severely damaging it. In 1911, an almost identical gold copy was made, and all the precious stones were transferred to it. Subsequently, the new crown underwent several changes to make it lighter and more comfortable. It now weighs 910 grams. This new imperial crown was crowned by George VI in 1937 and Elizabeth II in 1953. However, the crown of St. Edward is still used directly for the coronation, and the head of the monarch leaving Westminster Abbey after the coronation is already crowned with the luxurious crown of the British Empire.

And this is what the crown looks like today on the head of its owner

The famous stones of the British Crown

Among the gorgeous, shining gems that dot the crown, there are some that are truly unique.

At the top of the crown, in the Maltese cross, flaunts a luxurious blue sapphire of St. Edward himself, which was taken from a previously owned ring, and in the cross below - the famous bright red Black Prince ruby of 170 carats (34 g), whose history is full of murders and bloodshed. And he himself resembles a blood clot.

One of the largest diamonds in the world, Cullinan II, is fixed under this ruby on the pediment of the crown. Its history is as follows … In 1905, a huge diamond weighing more than 3100 carats was found in a diamond copy of the British colony in South Africa, the value of which is equivalent to the value of 94 tons of gold. The found diamond was named Cullinan.

But, unfortunately, cracks were found in the diamond. Then it was decided to split it along the existing cracks. The master cutter, who was instructed to split the diamond along its natural cracks, had been preparing for this important task for several months, because he had to make one very accurate blow. But everything worked out, and the diamond split into two halves.

In the end, from this huge diamond, after cutting, 105 diamonds appeared - two large ones, seven medium-sized ones and many small ones. They did not change the name of large and medium-sized diamonds, they only numbered them.

And now the 530-carat Cullinan I diamond adorns the king's scepter, and the 317-carat Cullinan II diamond adorns the crown of the British Empire.

Behind the crown is the dazzling Stuart Sapphire, which has changed several owners before. Initially, it was under the Black Prince's diamond, but was later moved to the back of the crown, making room for the Cullinan II diamond.

But in addition to these two main crowns, the Tower also houses other, also noteworthy, very beautiful and famous British crowns.

Crown of India and Queen Mary

Since, according to the laws of Britain, it is forbidden to export royal regalia outside the country, these two wonderful crowns were specially made for the royal couple George V and Mary, who were going to visit India. They were used for their intended purpose only once.

Crown of the Queen Mother, Elizabeth, 1937

This is the only 500 gram platinum British crown made in 1937 for Elizabeth, wife of George VI, for his coronation ceremony. The crown is decorated with 2,800 diamonds, among which the most honorable place is occupied by the Indian “Koh-i-Noor” diamond of 105 carats - one of the most famous in the world.

And in continuation of the theme, an almost detective story about why Princess Blanche's crown was the only one to survive among all the crowns of medieval England.