Tea at Trianon: Queen Elizabeth's Boucheron Brooches

John Wilson Croker on Marie-Antoinette

"We have followed the history of Marie Antoinette with the greatest diligence and scrupulosity. We have lived in those times. We have talked with some of her friends and some of her enemies; we have read, certainly not all, but hundreds of the libels written against her; and we have, in short, examined her life with– if we may be allowed to say so of ourselves– something of the accuracy of contemporaries, the diligence of inquirers, and the impartiality of historians, all combined; and we feel it our duty to declare, in as a solemn a manner as literature admits of, our well-matured opinion that every reproach against the morals of the queen was a gross calumny– that she was, as we have said, one of the purest of human beings."

~from History of the Guillotine by John Wilson Croker, 1844

Edmund Burke on Marie-Antoinette

"It is now sixteen or seventeen years since I saw the queen of France, then dauphiness, at Versailles; and surely there never lighted on this orb, which she hardly seemed to touch, a more delightful vision. I saw her just above the horizon, decorating and cheering the elevated sphere she had just begun to move in, glittering like a morning star full of life and splendor and joy. Oh, what a revolution....Little did I dream that I should have lived to see such disasters fall upon her, in a nation of gallant men, in a nation of men of honor and of cavaliers! I thought ten thousand swords must have leaped from their scabbards, to avenge even a look which threatened her with insult. But the age of chivalry is gone; that of sophisters, economists, and calculators has succeeded...."

~Edmund Burke, October 1790

Saturday, February 4, 2023

Queen Elizabeth's Boucheron Brooches

From Tatler:

No monarch in living history has left such a momentous mark on the world as Queen Elizabeth II. For 70 years, the late royal matriarch provided hope, guidance and resilience to the United Kingdom, and inspired countless citizens across the globe with her unprecedented devotion. Now, the historic jewellery house, Boucheron, presents a touching tribute to Her Majesty by breathing new life into one of her most treasured pieces. It was in July of 1937 that Prince George, Duke of Kent entered Boucheron’s London boutique and purchase a set of two dazzling aquamarine and diamond brooches. The French house was already a firm royal favourite: Prince Felix Youssopoff bought a diamond corsage in 1878, Lady Greville commissioned a tiara in 1921 which was eventually given to the Queen Mother and then Queen Consort Camilla, and the Maharajah of Patiala had the house set the stones of his treasure in 1928; marking an international seal of sovereign approval. (Read more.)