Hi! I don't know if you've seen My years with the Queen (Lady Pamela Hicks docu), I think I have all the tiaras at the docu identified except for this one:
The one Patricia (right) is wearing, I was wondering if you knew which tiara it is and what's happened to it.
Also did Pamela inherited two tiaras form her parents (the one Edwina and her are wearing in the pic at the coronation) and Patricia only inherited the one with the stars she wore to her wedding? I find it very odd since Patricia was the eldest and would inherit her father's titles.
Letβs just do a rundown of all of the tiaras that belonged to Edwina Mountbatten, Countess Mountbatten of Burma, because Iβve never really covered them here before.
THE Mountbatten Tiara - It was made by Chaumet in 1934 from an earlier tiara for Baroness MarieΒ de Cartier de Marchienne, wife of the Belgian ambassador to the UK.Β Marie later sold the new tiara to Cartier and Edwina bought it from them in 1937.Β This caused some confusion for a while about who made it because it was stored in a Cartier box.Β This tiara was inherited by Pamela and was sold at Sothebyβs in 2002 to a private collector.Β Itβs a really beautiful piece and Iβm glad the current owner loans it out.Β It was most recently displayed at the βChaumet in Majestyβ exhibition in Monaco in 2019.
Mountbatten Star Tiara - It was made from a star tiara given to Princess Victoria of Battenberg from Princess Louise, Duchess of Argyll, to replace another star tiara that had been taken by the Bolsheviks after it was left in Russia for safekeeping at the start of WWI.Β It was given to Edwina as a wedding present and she had it remodeled by Chaumet into itβs current form.Β This one was inherited by Patricia and is still with her descendants.
Mountbatten Tutti Frutti Bandeau Tiara - It was made by Cartier in 1928 and can be worn as two bracelets.Β I donβt know who inherited this tiara but is was sold at some point and is now on display at the Victoria and Albert Museum.
Mountbatten Pearl Tiara - It was first worn by Edwina but it primarily associated with Pamela because she wore it extensively during her tenure as lady-in-waiting to QEII.Β Itβs never been seen at auction and is assumed to still be with Pamelaβs descendants.Β
Iβm going to include some Brabourne tiaras in order to answer your question so none of the following ones belonged to Edwina.Β Patricia married John Knatchbull, 7th Barron Brabourne, and they inherited all of the jewelry that belonged to his mother, Lady Doreen Knatchbull, Baroness Braboune.
Brabourne Necklace Tiara -Β The tiara Patricia wore to the 1953 coronation was made from a diamond and emerald necklace that belonged to her mother-in-law.Β The set included bracelets, brooches, and choker necklaces that could be combined to create larger jewels.Β The tiara was also worn by Patriciaβs daughter-in-law, Melissa, when she married Michael-John Knatchbull in 1985.Β It was sold but Iβm not sure when.
Brabourne Diamond Tiara - Iβve never been able to find any pictures of Patricia wearing this tiara even though she owned it for a long time.Β It was soldΒ at Christieβs in 2002.
Looking at this Pamela did inherit more tiaras or if the tutti frutti went to Patricia then Pamela at least inherited grander tiaras than Patricia even though she was the younger daughter.Β It could be because Edwina knew that Patricia was going to inherit the Brabourne tiaras or because Pamela was serving as a lady-in-waiting so she had more use for them.Β Either way Edwina was very wealthy in her own right and had a lot of jewelry.Β Iβm sure that the jewelry as a whole was divided equally even if the tiaras werenβt.
