Kate Middleton pays tribute to Queen wearing her earrings and necklace at Festival of Remembrance
LONDON, ENGLAND: The Princess of Wales honored Queen Elizabeth II, who passed away on September 8 at the age of 96, by donning two pieces of her jewelry: a pair of drop pearl earrings, and a pearl choker. The royal appeared solemn in an all-black outfit while she attended the annual Festival of Remembrance on Sunday night, November 13.
Kate, 40, attended the British Legion's annual event at London's Royal Albert Hall with other senior royals. It was one of several events the royals attended to honor the nation's war dead. Kate wore an all-black outfit for the evening event, selecting a belted Self Portrait dress with a midi skirt and a blazer on top. She previously wore an ivory version of the same dress.
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She accessorized the dress with a little black clutch bag, a pair of pointed black shoes, and sheer black tights to keep the outfit basic. She let her glossy brown hair free. Her makeup was also understated and sophisticated, with a natural pink lip and a dark smokey eye.
Her three red poppies were the only color on the somber clothing. While the palace has never officially said why the monarch wears more than one, it has been rumored that the three flowers stand in for three of her family who died in the First World War.
The focus of Kate's attire was her accessories, particularly her pearl choker and earrings. Both items were originally owned by Queen Elizabeth, who wore them numerous times during her 70-year reign and was photographed wearing them. Diana, Princess of Wales, also wore them on a few occasions.
The necklace, which is referred to as a "Japanese choker," has four rows of pearls with a curving diamond clasp in the middle.
The Queen is claimed to have ordered it using pearls that the Japanese government gave her as a present on her first state visit to the country in 1975.
After lending the outfit to Diana to wear during a state visit by Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands the previous year, the Queen was spotted wearing it during an engagement in Bangladesh in 1983. At the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh's 70th wedding anniversary dinner in 2017, Kate was seen wearing the necklace.
They were made from pearls that the Bahraini king gave as a wedding gift to the Queen and Philip in 1947. The monarch famously wore the diamonds during her first Royal Command photograph by Dorothy Wilding in July 1952. After that, she wore the earrings multiple times during her reign. She also occasionally loaned them to her daughter-in-law Sophie Wessex, 57.
Kate had already taken the earrings on loan. She initially wore them in 2016 to the Westminster Abbey Remembrance Day service. She wore them again in 2021 when she went to Prince Philip's funeral and King Charles' first Remembrance Day celebration.