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When will Princess Lilibet wear her first tiara?

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex's daughter is a grandchild of King Charles

Meghan Markle wearing tiara and Lilibet
Danielle Stacey
Online Royal CorrespondentLondon
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It will be a milestone occasion when the Duke and Duchess of Sussex's daughter, Princess Lilibet, has her first tiara moment.

Prince Harry and Meghan may have stepped back from royal duties in 2020, but there is a chance that their daughter will one day wear royal jewels like her mother.

Lilibet, two, and her big brother, Archie, four, are likely to carve out their own careers when they grow up, like Harry's cousins, Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie.

However, despite not being working members of the royal family, Beatrice and Eugenie both wore tiaras from their late grandmother Queen Elizabeth II's jewellery collection on their wedding days.

Eugenie was loaned the Greville Emerald Kokoshnik tiara for her nuptials to Jack Brooksbank in 2018, while Beatrice donned Queen Mary's Diamond Fringe tiara for her intimate ceremony to Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi in 2020 – the same jewels Princess Elizabeth wore on her wedding day to Prince Philip in 1947.

As Lilibet is King Charles's grandchild, it's possible the monarch may loan his granddaughter a tiara for her own wedding day in future.

Meghan wore the art-deco style Queen Mary's Diamond Bandeau tiara with her Givenchy wedding dress when she tied the knot with Prince Harry in 2018.

Harry described the moment that his bride was invited to choose a tiara for her nuptials by the late Queen in his memoir, Spare. The Duke says that he and Meghan were "both touched" when his maternal aunts Lady Jane Fellowes and Lady Sarah McCorquodale asked if the future Duchess would like to wear the late Princess Diana's Spencer Tiara. 

"Shortly before the wedding, however, Granny reached out. She offered us access to her collection of tiaras. She even invited us to Buckingham Palace to try them on. Do come over, I remember her saying," Harry recalls.

"Extraordinary morning. We walked into Granny's private dressing room, right next to her bedroom, a space I'd never been in. Along with Granny was a jewelry expert, an eminent historian who knew the lineage of each stone in the royal collection. Also present was Granny's dresser and confidante, Angela [Kelly]."

Meghan Markle wearing tiara and veil© Getty
Meghan looked beautiful in Queen Mary's Diamond Bandeau tiara

Harry says that the late Queen had chosen five tiaras from the vault - "One was all emeralds. One was aquamarines. Each was more dazzlingly stunning than the last".

Meghan Markle in her wedding dress and tiara smiling at Harry on their wedding day© Getty
Meghan has only had one tiara moment

The royal groom said "each took my breath" but that one of the five that Meghan tried on stood out.

While many brides have chosen to wear tiaras from the royal vaults, Princess Margaret had actually purchased the jewels she wore on her wedding day to Antony Armstrong-Jones – the Poltimore tiara – at auction. She even wore the headpiece at the Royal Opera House before her big day.

Princess Margaret wearing the Poltimore tiara on her wedding day to Antony Armstrong-Jones in 1960© Getty
Princess Margaret wearing the Poltimore tiara on her wedding day to Antony Armstrong-Jones in 1960

Nowadays, tiaras are mainly reserved for weddings, state banquets, diplomatic receptions and the state opening of Parliament, but royal ladies would often wear jewels to film premieres or charity balls.

Princess Anne making her tiara debut at the state opening of Parliament in 1967© Getty
Princess Anne making her tiara debut at the state opening of Parliament in 1967

Princess Anne first wore a tiara when she was just 17, and again for her 21st birthday picture, years before her first marriage to Captain Mark Phillips.

What tiara could Princess Lilibet wear?

Queen Elizabeth II wearing Queen Alexandra's Kokoshnik© Getty
Queen Elizabeth II wearing Queen Alexandra's Kokoshnik in 2008

The royal collection contains a treasure trove of beautiful tiaras, many of which Queen Elizabeth II inherited from her mother, the Queen Mother, and her grandmother, Queen Mary. The vault includes Queen Alexandra's Kokoshnik, which hasn't been worn by any other royal other than the late Queen. 

Lilibet could also be loaned Queen Mary's Diamond Bandeau Tiara - in a sweet nod to her mother, Meghan, on her wedding day or alternatively, late Princess Diana's Spencer Tiara. 

Princess Diana waves after wedding ceremony© Getty
Diana wore the Spencer tiara on her wedding day

The Spencer tiara was most memorably worn by Princess Diana for her royal wedding to Prince Charles in 1981. Diana's mother, Frances Jane Kydd, and two elder sisters Lady Sarah Spencer and Lady Jane Spencer also opted to sport the jewels for their respective nuptials.

LISTEN: Inside King Charles' private lunch with Princess Kate

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