Antique Image of the Day: Punch at Queen Victoria's Delhi Durbar, 1870

The Victoria & Albert Museum
Click to Enlarge

At the 1870 Delhi Durbar, Queen Victoria was proclaimed Empress of India. The Durbar was depicted in countless paintings and photographs which gave many Britons their first glance at India. Many of the illustrations of the Durbar depicted the Queen as she was named Empress. We should note, however, that Victoria did not attend the Delhi Durbar, and was named Empress in absentia. In fact, she never even once visited India. So, any depiction of Her Majesty in attendance is purely fictional.

This black and white cartoon was first published in the magazine Punch on December 14, 1877. It depicts a procession of exotic animals, produce and people inspired by the Delhi Durbar, but also as an editorial response to problems across the empire. The image, drawn by Joseph Swain (1820-1909). Shows camels, crocodiles and elephants, many of them labeled with slogans referring to problems across Queen Victoria's lands. At the head of the procession is Mr. Punch, riding in a Roman style chariot and dressed in the armor of a centurion—acting in his longtime role as the voice of and protector of the people. Behind him are various government officials and a mysterious figure on horseback wearing the sash of “Europa.”

The cartoon is entitled PVNCHIVS, IMPERATOR. A.D. MDCCCLXXVII ("Punchius Imperator a.d. 1877”). This is preserved in the magnificent George Speaight Punch & Judy Collection at the V&A.

Card of the Day: H.R.H. King George V

Always go to the bathroom when you have a chance.
King George V

Here’s our friend, H.M. King George V again. Of course he’d make a few appearances in this series of cards by Godfrey & Phillips. After all, the cards were produced in 1935 for the Silver Jubilee of the King and Queen Mary.

In this hand-colored photo, the King is seen in his coronation robes wearing the Imperial crown. He looks quite uncomfortable actually. Perhaps he didn’t have a chance to use the facilities. He was a proponent of bathroom breaks.

Following the death of his father, King Edward VII, King George V ascended the throne alongside his beloved wife, the former Princess Mary of Teck. George had enjoyed a few years of relative peace to get used to the idea of being the King. It was not something he’d ever really considered. After all, his brother, Prince Albert Victor, had been the next in line. However, Prince Eddie—as he was called—died while engaged to Mary of Teck, leaving George his intended bride and, also, as the heir to the throne.

The Coronation of King George V
Laurits Regner Tuxen
The Royal Collection

The coronation of King George V and Queen Mary (she had been forbidden to use her original first name—Victoria) took place at Westminster Abbey on June 22, 1911. A celebration ensued with the Festival of Empire in London. Later that year, the King and Queen travelled to India to participate in the Delhi Durbar (their coronation as Emperor and Empress of India). There, they were presented to Indian dignitaries and princes on December 12, 1911.

Here’s an interesting bit of trivia about the Delhi Durbar. Queen Mary—always a fan of jewels—thought it better that they have new crowns for the Durbar. It wouldn’t do, thought Mary, to wear the English crowns for the Indian coronation. Parliament said that such an expense was not needed. Mary, however, disagreed and gently asked their friends to donate jewels to assemble new crowns for the Indian event. She got her way and new crowns were made at no cost to the empire.

King George V and Queen Mary wore the newly-created Imperial Crowns of India at the ceremony. There, they declared the controversial change of the capital of India from Calcutta to Delhi.

Here are some videos of both the Coronation and the Delhi Durbar. Enjoy!

Mastery of Design: Delhi Durbar Tiara, 1911

The Delhi Durbar Tiara
Made for H.M. Queen Mary
Garrard & Co., 1911
Crown Copyright
The Royal Collection
Image Courtesy of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II

Queen Mary had decided that she and King George V needed different crowns when named Emperor and Empress of India than those they’d worn for their 1911 coronation.  She was told that the expense seemed unnecessary.  Her Majesty, then, went to her friends and asked them nicely to donate the diamonds and gemstones which were needed for these crowns.  She went back to the advisors and told them that the only cost would be the manufacture of the crowns, and, she got her way.

She also got a nice tiara out of the deal.  This tiara was made by Garrard & Co. in 1911 for the December 12 Delhi Durbar.  The tiara was constructed so that it could be hung with the Cambridge Emeralds or with pearls should the Queen desire.  Therefore, the piece is considered part of  the Queen’s parure of emeralds and diamonds which also included a necklace, stomacher, brooch and earrings.

The tiara a designed as a tall circlet of lyres and S-scrolls which are linked by festoons of rose-cut and brilliant-cut diamonds.  In 1912, the tiara was altered so that it could accommodate both of the two Lesser Stars of Africa – Cullinan III and IV.

Queen Mary lent the tiara to Queen Elizabeth in 1946 so that the Queen Mother could wear it during the 1947 South African Tour.  Following Queen Mary’s 1953 death, the Queen Mother kept the Durbar tiara in her own collection until her death in 2002. In 2005, it was lent by Queen Elizabeth II to The Duchess of Cornwall, wife of Prince Charles.

Mastery of Design: Delhi Durbar Tiara, 1911

The Delhi Durbar Tiara
Made for H.M. Queen Mary
Garrard & Co., 1911
Crown Copyright
The Royal Collection 
Image Courtesy of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II

Queen Mary had decided that she and King George V needed different crowns when named Emperor and Empress of India than those they’d worn for their 1911 coronation.  She was told that the expense seemed unnecessary.  Her Majesty, then, went to her friends and asked them nicely to donate the diamonds and gemstones which were needed for these crowns.  She went back to the advisors and told them that the only cost would be the manufacture of the crowns, and, she got her way.

She also got a nice tiara out of the deal.  This tiara was made by Garrard & Co. in 1911 for the December 12 Delhi Durbar.  The tiara was constructed so that it could be hung with the Cambridge Emeralds or with pearls should the Queen desire.  Therefore, the piece is considered part of  the Queen’s parure of emeralds and diamonds which also included a necklace, stomacher, brooch and earrings.

The tiara a designed as a tall circlet of lyres and S-scrolls which are linked by festoons of rose-cut and brilliant-cut diamonds.  In 1912, the tiara was altered so that it could accommodate both of the two Lesser Stars of Africa – Cullinan III and IV.

Queen Mary lent the tiara to Queen Elizabeth in 1946 so that the Queen Mother could wear it during the 1947 South African Tour.  Following Queen Mary’s 1953 death, the Queen Mother kept the Durbar tiara in her own collection until her death in 2002. In 2005, it was lent by Queen Elizabeth II to The Duchess of Cornwall, wife of Prince Charles.

Mastery of Design: The Indian Tiara, pre-1901

Delhi Durbar Tiara
Crown Copyright
The Royal Collection
Image Courtesy of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II

Rubies, diamonds and pearls scintillate from the twelve gold, tear-shaped sections of this tiara.  The sections rise from a band of gold and pearls.

In true Indian style of the Nineteenth Century, the reverse of the twelve crests are adorned with portraits of enamel liked by a foliate pattern of brilliant colors.

Made in India for Queen Victoria, this tiara signifies Her Majesty's role as Empress of India.  Though Victoria did not attend her Delhi Durbar, the ceremony wherein she was named Empress, she did receive this magnificent piece as a symbol of this accession.  

After Victoria's death, the tiara was hidden away.  Successive Queens Alexandra and Mary wore different tiaras, Mary especially having one created for her own Durbar.  However, it was Queen Mary who saw that this treasure was not adapted or changed, a fate which often befell such pieces.  Mary, in 1924, saw that the tiara was placed among the Indian Collection which belongs to the Crown as part of the Royal Collection.  Because of this, the tiara has been restored and, as of 2013, is on display at the Queen's Gallery at Buckingham Palace.

Card of the Day: The Coronation Durbar in India

The fourth in the fifty-piece set of Royal Commemorative Cards produced in 1935 by Wills Cigarettes for the Silver Jubilee of King George V and Mary of Teck depicts the Coronation Durbar in India wherein the King was proclaimed Emperor of India.


The reverse of the card states:

THE CORONATION DURBAR IN INDIA


At Delhi, the historic city of the Moghul Emperors, King George V was acclaimed Emperor of India in December, 1911. His visit with the Queen-Empress for the Durbar was the occasion of Administrative changes and the transfer of the Seat of Government from Calcutta to Delhi. The welcome received in Calcutta, Bombay and wherever the Royal Standard was hoisted was astonishing. The ruling princes vied with each other in expressing loyalty and homage, and the Royal progresses were witnessed by multitudes of every race, class and creed. The picture shows Their Majesties on the balcony of the Shah Jehan’s palace at the Durbar Garden Party.

Painting of the Day: A “Company” Portrait of King George V, 1911

Company Painting
King George V, 1911
Indian
The Victoria & Albert Museum

I like this painting. It’s probably because I have a particular affinity for King George V, but nevertheless, it’s a charming, if not rough, portrait. We see King George V sans crown, wearing a red tunic with gold epaulettes, a blue sash and many stars and garter badges, his left hand rests on his sword hilt.

This is a “Company Painting” created around the time of the 1911 Coronation. The painting is based on an illustration in a magazine, probably one issued to commemorate George’s Coronation on 22 June, 1911 or, perhaps, the Delhi durbar, which took place during the official State Visit of George V and Queen Mary, in the following December

“Company Paintings” were produced by Indian artists for Europeans living and working in the Indian subcontinent, and especially for British employees of the East India Company. Such paintings show a fusion of traditional Indian artistic styles with the sensibilities of Western art. Some Company paintings were specially commissioned, while others were made to be sold at bazaars. That accounts for the slightly rough nature of the portrait. It’s more iconographic than it is photographic, owing to the style of Indian painters of the time. But, somehow, that makes it charming as it is truly a representation of the amassed ingenuity of the British Empire of the early Twentieth Century.

Card of the Day: The Imperial Crown of India

Seeing this crown makes me happy because it makes me think of Queen Mary and all the trouble she went through to make sure this crown was made. Now, as we know, Mary of Teck was a collector and she had a special weakness for gems. When her husband, King George V was crowned, they prepared to travel to India for the Delhu Durbar wherein they would ascend as Emperor and Empress. Mary, being also a stickler for detail and making sure that events were carried out properly, was determined that she and her husband be able to wear crowns at the Durbar. There was only one problem—the official crowns were forbidden by Royal Law to be removed from the United Kingdom. No matter how much Queen Mary protested, there was no way that those crowns were leaving England.


And, so, Queen Mary decided that new crowns needed to be made especially for the event so that the new Emperor and Empress of India would be appropriately attired. However, Parliament wasn’t too keen on paying for new crowns. Queen Mary said ostensibly, “Leave it to me.”

And, so, Queen Mary managed to get her friends to donate an array of magnificent gems for the cause. That means, basically, she shook her friends down and they had no choice but to agree. I like to picture Mary of Teck with a big velvet sack of jewels, plunking it down at Garrard’s (the Crown Jewelers) and saying, “make me some crowns.” But, I’m sure that’s not how it really happened. Either way, Mary got her crowns.

Garrard and Co. constructed the crown at the cost of £60,000 (£4,530,137 as of 2011) or $300,000 ($7,047,857 as of 2011). It is set with emeralds, rubies, sapphires, 6,100 diamonds, and one particularly fine ruby. As do the other British crowns, The Imperial Crown of India consists of a circlet topped by four crosses pattée and four fleurs-de-lis. It differs in that the arches on top, which join at a typical monde and cross, are not curved as the other crowns, but rather pointed in an Asiatic manner. Also, it is the only crown with eight arches instead of four—representing the difference between Emperor and King.

And, so, King George V and Queen Mary travelled to Delhi for the Durbar ceremonies. They wore their new crowns, but did not participate in a separate coronation since the Archbishop of Canterbury did not think it fitting for a Christian religious service to take place in a predominantly non-Christian country. Queen Mary nodded sympathetically when George V complained that the crown was too heavy and hurt his head. “Yes, dear.”

It’s important to note that the Imperial Crown of India is NOT part of the Crown Jewels of the United Kingdom since it was made privately for Mary of Teck and George V. It lives with the Crown Jewels, but it does not belong to the U.K. and is privately owned by the Queen as a family legacy.

The crown has not been worn by any Sovereign since.

Saturday Sparkle: Queen Mary’s Emerald and Diamond Brooch

Emerald and Diamond Brooch
Garrards
Bequeathed to Queen Elizabeth II, 1953
The Royal Collection

As I’ve mentioned before Queen Mary (Mary of Teck) had a habit of collecting things that she liked. She was also the frequent recipient of gifts—really nice gifts. This was one of them.


Presented to Queen Mary at the Delhi Durbar, by “The Ladies of India,” this gorgeous brooch was created specifically for the Queen by those wonderful fellows at Garrards. The brooch sports an enormous emerald which is carved with a rose on the front and a rose bush on the back. The entire piece is surrounded in stunning brilliant-cut diamonds, set in gold.

Upon Queen Mary’s passing, she bequeathed this eye-popper to her granddaughter, Queen Elizabeth II.

Obscure Book of the Day: A Royal Family Album from the Days of Queen Victoria to H.R.H. Prince Charles of Edinburgh

This Pitkin Book is just what it’s title suggests—it chronicles the lives of the Royals from the days of Queen Victoria until 1948 with the birth of Prince Charles of Edinburgh. It’s important to note that while most of us know Prince Charles as the Prince of Wales, at the time of his birth, since his mother was not yet Queen and his father was the Duke of Edinburgh, he had not yet been granted the title of “Prince of Wales.”

As with the other Pitkin Guides, this one relies on pictures more so than text to tell its tale. And, it really is a lovely book filled with reproduced paintings and photographs following the lives of six generations of the Royal Family.

Let’s take a look inside…

Queen Alexandra while Princess of Wales

George V and Queen Mary on their wedding day while Duke and Duchess of York

Queen Victoria and Prince Albert with the Prince of Wales, later King Edward VII

Queen Mary and King George V attend the wedding of their daughter, The Princess Mary

King George V and Queen Mary at the 1911 Delhi Durbar

Queen Mary didn't want much to do with her eldest son, The Duke of Windsor, following the whole Abdication Kerfuffle.  However, he did return to England just before his mother's death and they shared a last, tense visit.

Prince Charles' Christening Cake

Queen Mary and Prince Charles--the last of the old guard and the first of the new.

Mastery of Design: Queen Mary’s Emerald and Diamond Choker, c. 1920

Choker
Diamonds, Emeralds, Platinum
circa 1920
Garrard's
The Royal Collection

This shimmering choker of emeralds and brilliant-cut diamonds was originally set in yellow gold and contains several of the Cambridge emeralds from the Delhi Durbar Parure. In the 1920’s, the always fashionable Mary of Teck commissioned Garrard’s to re-set the stones in a platinum setting as was fashion of the Art Deco.


This was one of the special pieces of jewelry that were bequeathed to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II upon Queen Mary’s death in 1953. This choker was famously worn by Diana, Princess of Wales who adapted it into a headband when she borrwed it from Queen Elizabeth.  The Princess of Wales also wore the piece as a choker as well.

Sunday Morning Special: The Delhi Durbar, 1911

In the December of 1911 (on my birthday, the twelfth, to be exact—well, sixty-two years earlier), King George V and Queen Mary traveled to India to be crowned as Emperor and Empress.  I’ve finally managed to find some film footage of the magnificent event.  Skip to obnoxiously long ad.  

Mastery of Design: Queen Mary’s Emerald and Diamond Brooch

Emerald and Diamond Brooch
Garrards
Bequeathed to Queen Elizabeth II, 1953
The Royal Collection

As I’ve mentioned before Queen Mary (Mary of Teck) had a habit of collecting things that she liked. She was also the frequent recipient of gifts—really nice gifts. This was one of them.


Presented to Queen Mary at the Delhi Durbar, by “The Ladies of India,” this gorgeous brooch was created specifically for the Queen by those wonderful fellows at Garrards. The brooch sports an enormous emerald which is carved with a rose on the front and a rose bush on the back. The entire piece is surrounded in stunning brilliant-cut diamonds, set in gold.

Upon Queen Mary’s passing, she bequeathed this eye-popper to her granddaughter, Queen Elizabeth II.

Obscure Book of the Day: A Pictorial Biography of Her Majesty Queen Mary

Here’s another Pitkin Guide!  Hooray!  This one is called “A Pictorial History of Her Majesty Queen Mary.”  And, that’s really exactly what it is.  Like all Pitkin books of the era, this one has no date of publication, but it was obviously published during Queen Mary’s lifetime, so before 1953.  Judging by the images, now-Queen, then-Princess Elizabeth had already married and given birth to Prince Charles, so this book dates between 1948 and 1953.

The forward, “The Story of a Great and Gracious Lady” was written by Marguerite D. Peacock, a frequent contributor to these Pitkin Guides.

Let’s take a look inside…

Queen Mary, first as The Duchess of York with her first son, David--the Great Keruffler--and, finally with her grandson, Prince Charles.

Princess Mary of Teck

Princess May was a beloved figure throughout Britain.

After her marriage, Mary was created Duchess of York.

At the Delhi Durbar with King George V--declared Emperor and Empress of India.

Ready to be Queen.  Wearing the famed Cambridge Emeralds.

Queen Mary was a great source of national morale during the Great War.

Centerfold.

Her final meeting with her disappointing eldest child, David.  After the Abdication Kerfuffle, Mary did not see her son for many years.  The Duke of Windsor had one final visit with his mother before her death. Jerk.

If you love Queen Mary as much as I do, you might enjoy our exclusive “Teck Support” designs which are available only at our online store.  Or, if you want to rub the late Duke of Windsor’s abdicating nose in it, the Abdication Kerfuffle ™ designs will be just the thing.