Everything about British Crown Jewels totally explained
The collective term
Crown Jewels denotes the regalia and vestments worn by the sovereign of the
United Kingdom during the
coronation ceremony and at various other state functions. The term refers to the following objects: the
crowns,
sceptres (with either the cross or the dove),
orbs,
swords,
rings,
spurs,
colobium sindonis,
dalmatic,
armill, and the royal robe or pall, as well as several other objects connected with the ceremony itself.
Many of these descend directly from the pre-
Reformation period and have a religious and sacral connotation. The vestures donned by the sovereign following the
unction, for instance, closely resemble the
alb and dalmatic worn by
bishops, although the contention that they're meant to confer upon the sovereign an ecclesiastical character is in disrepute among
Christian scholars.
The oldest set of Crown Jewels dating from the
Anglo-Saxon period were lost by
John of England near
The Wash in 1216. A replacement set was made shortly afterwards which was later joined by the addition of
Welsh prince
Llywelyn's coronet in 1284. This replacement set was stolen from
Westminster Abbey in 1303 although most of the pieces, if not all, were recovered days later from the window of a London jeweller's shop with dire consequences for the owner. Since 1303, they've been stored in the
Tower of London.
Oliver Cromwell melted down most of the Crown Jewels of his time after the establishment of the
Commonwealth in 1649. Upon the
Restoration of
Charles II of England and
Scotland in 1660, most of the regalia were replaced. The only pieces to survive from before the Civil War are three swords and a spoon.
The British Crown Jewels are considered to be the most valuable and one of the largest jewellery collections in existence.
Crowns
The collection of Crown Jewels contains various crowns, some of which are used by every Sovereign, others being made personally for Sovereigns or for the Queens Consort. Typically the crown of a King has a slightly pointed arched top, while that of a Queen has a slightly bowed top.
St. Edward's Crown was made in 1661. Made of gold, its design consists of four
crosses pattée and four
fleurs-de-lis, with two arches on top. Surmounting the arches is a jeweled cross pattée. The Crown includes 444 precious stones. It is used through most of the coronation ceremony. It is noted by a number of British monarchs to be extremely heavy and difficult to wear.
Queen Elizabeth II opted to use a stylised representation of this crown in images of the
Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom.
The
Imperial State Crown was made in 1937 for
King George VI, and was similar to the
Diamond crown made in 1838 for
Queen Victoria. The present Crown is made of gold and includes four crosses pattée and four fleurs-de-lis, with two arches on top, surmounted by a cross pattée. The Crown includes many jewels: 2,868
diamonds, 273
pearls, 17
sapphires, 11
emeralds, and five
rubies. Among the stones are several famous ones, including the
Black Prince's Ruby (actually a
spinel) and the
Cullinan II diamond, also known as the Lesser Star of Africa. It is worn after the conclusion of the Coronation ceremony when the monarch leaves
Westminster Abbey, and also at the annual
State Opening of Parliament.
The
Imperial Crown of India was created when
King George V visited
Delhi as
Emperor of India. In order to prevent the pawning of the Crown Jewels, British law prohibited the removal of a Crown Jewel from the country. For this reason, a new crown was made. Set with more than 6,000 diamonds, it's one of the heaviest crowns in the collection (at 34.05 ounces or 0.97 kg). It has since not been used.
The
George IV State Diadem was made in 1820 for the coronation of
King George IV, and was worn during the coronation processions of
Queen Victoria and
Queen Elizabeth II.
Queens consort, that is, wives of Kings, traditionally wore the
Crown of Mary of Modena, Queen of King
James II. By the beginning of the 20th century that small crown was in a decrepit state. A new European-style
crown, flatter and with more arches than was traditional in British crowns, was manufactured for Queen
Alexandra, consort of King
Edward VII. A new
crown, more akin to traditional British crowns, was manufactured for
Queen Mary, consort of King
George V, who was crowned in 1911. The final new consort's crown in the 20th century was manufactured for
Queen Elizabeth, consort of King
George VI, who along with her husband was crowned in 1937. All three consorts' crowns in turn included the famous
Koh-i-Noor diamond. This latter
Crown of Queen Elizabeth was also worn, minus its arches, by the by-then Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother during Elizabeth II's coronation. It rested on top of the Queen Mother's coffin during her funeral in 2002.
Mary of Modena's Crowns
State Diadem—Worn by her on the way to her coronation and worn in such a way by Queens Consort down to the nineteenth century.
Coronation Crown—The crown with which she was actually crowned. Now in the Museum of London.
State Crown—Worn for the procession out of the Abbey and put to various other uses subsequently.
The Orb and Sceptres
Two Sceptres used by the Sovereign form a part of the regalia:
The
Sceptre with the Cross was made in 1661, and is so called because it's surmounted by a cross. In 1905, it was redesigned to incorporate the
Cullinan I, also known as the Great Star of Africa, which at over 530 carats (106 g) is the second largest cut diamond in the world after
The Golden Jubilee. During the coronation, the monarch bears the Sceptre with the Cross in the right hand.
The
Sceptre with the Dove was also made in 1661, and atop it's a dove symbolizing the
Holy Ghost. While the Sceptre with the Cross is borne in the right hand, the Sceptre with the Dove is borne in the left. At the same time as the Sovereign holds both Sceptres, he or she's crowned with St. Edward's Crown.
The
Sovereign's Orb, a type of
globus cruciger, is a hollow golden sphere made in 1661. There is a band of jewels running along the centre, and a half-band on the top hemisphere. Surmounting the orb is a jeweled Cross representing the Sovereign's role as
Defender of the Faith. For a part of the coronation, it's borne in the Sovereign's left hand.
Swords
Five Swords are used during the coronation.
The
Jewelled Sword of Offering was made for the Coronation of
King George IV. Its jewels are in the shapes of the floral symbols of the United Kingdom: the rose for England, the thistle for Scotland, and the shamrock for Ireland. It is the only sword actually presented to the Sovereign during the Coronation; the others are merely borne in front of the Sovereign.
The
Sword of State is the largest sword in the collection, and is borne in front of the Monarch by the
Lord Great Chamberlain both at the coronation and at the
State Opening of Parliament.
The other three swords used are the
Sword of Spiritual Justice, the
Sword of Temporal Justice, and the
Sword of Mercy. The latter has a blunt point and is known as
Curtana.
Other items
The
Ring was made for
William IV's coronation in 1831. Previously, each Sovereign received a new ring to symbolize their "marriage" to the nation, though no new rings have been used since 1831.
When the Sovereign is anointed by the
Archbishop of Canterbury, the anointing oil is poured from the
Ampulla into the
Anointing Spoon. The Ampulla is a hollow gold vessel shaped like an eagle, and the Spoon is a silver-gilt spoon set with pearls. The Spoon was bought by
Clement Kynnersley,
Yeoman of the Removing Wardrobe, for sixteen
shillings when Cromwell ordered the destruction of the new regalia; the Spoon, probably dating from the thirteenth century, is thus the oldest element of the Regalia.
The
Armills are gold bracelets said to symbolize sincerity and wisdom. Upon Queen Elizabeth II's coronation, a new set of gold armills was produced and presented on the behalf of various
Commonwealth governments, namely: the United Kingdom,
Canada,
Australia,
New Zealand,
South Africa,
Pakistan,
Ceylon, and
Southern Rhodesia.
The Tower of London
The Crown Jewels have been kept at the
Tower of London since 1303 after they were stolen from
Westminster Abbey. It is thought that most, if not all, were recovered shortly afterwards. After the coronation of Charles II, they were locked away and shown for a viewing fee paid to a custodian. However, this arrangement ended when Colonel
Thomas Blood stole the Crown Jewels after having bound and gagged the custodian. Thereafter, the Crown Jewels were kept in a part of the Tower known as Jewel House, where armed guards defend them. They were temporarily taken out of the Tower in the Second World War. It was reported that they were secretly kept in the basement vaults of the
Sun Life Insurance Company in
Montreal, Canada, during
World War II, along with the
gold bullion of the
Bank of England. However it has also been said that they were kept in the Round Tower of
Windsor Castle, or the
United States Bullion Depository. The Windsor Castle suggestion is the most probable since by law the Crown isn't allowed under any circumstances to leave the country, and the risk of transporting the Crown Jewels abroad would have outweighed any advantage.
Further Information
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