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.

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.

Unfolding Pictures: Queen Mary's Coronation Fan, 1911

Queen Mary's Coronation Fan, 1911

Crown Copyright
The Royal Collection
Courtesy of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II

Presented by the Worshipful Company of Fan Makers to Queen Mary on the occasion of the coronation on June 22, 1911, this fan of a cream cotton lace leaf is supported by plain blond tortoiseshell guards and sticks. Upon the front guard is an applied gold monogram of “MR” surmounted by a crown. The bottom of the fan is punctuated by a gold pin with diamond heads and a gold loop

This lace fan lead is painted with four shields of arms and a decorative border containing the rose, thistle and shamrock. Very often in the inventory of the Royal Collection, this fan was noted by Queen Mary as being “in use” throughout her lifetime. So, obviously, it was a favorite. It is shown in photographs as being used in India during the Durbar celebrations.

The fan was designed by the industrial designer, fan-maker and fan historian George Woolliscroft Rhead while the leaf was created in the workshop of Miss Fowler of Honiton. The guards and sticks were carved by Robert Gleeson under the direction of Mr Joseph Ettlinger, Past Master of the Fan Makers Company. The original box survives.

A similar fan was created by the Honiton lace-makers at the time of Queen Elizabeth’s (the Queen Mother) coronation in 1937. That leaf, however, incorporates roses, thistles and ferns and was designed by the niece of Miss Fowler.

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.

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.

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.  

Unfolding Pictures: Queen Mary's Coronation Fan, 1911

Queen Mary's Coronation Fan, 1911
Crown Copyright
The Royal Collection
Courtesy of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II

Presented by the Worshipful Company of Fan Makers to Queen Mary on the occasion of the coronation on June 22, 1911, this fan of a cream cotton lace leaf is supported by plain blond tortoiseshell guards and sticks. Upon the front guard is an applied gold monogram of “MR” surmounted by a crown. The bottom of the fan is punctuated by a gold pin with diamond heads and a gold loop

This lace fan lead is painted with four shields of arms and a decorative border containing the rose, thistle and shamrock. Very often in the inventory of the Royal Collection, this fan was noted by Queen Mary as being “in use” throughout her lifetime. So, obviously, it was a favorite. It is shown in photographs as being used in India during the Durbar celebrations.

The fan was designed by the industrial designer, fan-maker and fan historian George Woolliscroft Rhead while the leaf was created in the workshop of Miss Fowler of Honiton. The guards and sticks were carved by Robert Gleeson under the direction of Mr Joseph Ettlinger, Past Master of the Fan Makers Company. The original box survives.

A similar fan was created by the Honiton lace-makers at the time of Queen Elizabeth’s (the Queen Mother) coronation in 1937. That leaf, however, incorporates roses, thistles and ferns and was designed by the niece of Miss Fowler.

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.

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!