Tiaras to Brooches: Queen Elizabeth II's Papal Jewels
During her long royal life, Queen Elizabeth II met with five different popes, and the jewelry she wore for each audience shows the fascinating evolution of royal jewelry style at the Vatican
This week, the world mourned the loss of Pope Francis, who passed away at his home in the Vatican on Easter Monday. Today, as heads of state from across Europe and around the world gather for his funeral at St. Peter’s Basilica, we’re looking back at his meeting with the late Queen Elizabeth II—and the many other audiences and meetings she had with five different popes during her almost century-long life. The survey offers a fascinating look at both the diplomatic relationship between Britain and the Vatican during her reign and the evolving dress and jewelry standards expected for visits to the Holy See.
April 13, 1951: A private audience for Princess Elizabeth and Pope Pius XII
When Princess Elizabeth first had an audience at the Vatican, meetings between a member of the royal family and the pope were still controversial in some corners of Britain. The princess and her husband, the Duke of Edinburgh, had been invited to Italy in a private capacity by the Rome Polo Club in April 1951, and it was decided that they would pay a visit to Pope Pius XII at the Vatican during the trip.
News of the Princess’s forthcoming papal audience made Protestant extremists livid. Protests were organized against the “terrible” decision, with a group sending a telegram to King George VI expressing that they were “deeply grieved” about the meeting, but Church of England leaders were far more measured in their response. A church spokesman told the Associated Press, “The Princess is in Rome as a private individual and can visit whom she likes. For her to see the Pope is a matter of common courtesy. After all, he's a Christian leader—why shouldn't she call on him? There may be a difference of opinion between the Church of England and the Church of Rome, but there's certainly no enmity whatever.”
Philip and Elizabeth arrived in Vatican City on April 13, 1951, for their papal visit. The Duke wore his naval uniform for the occasion, while the Princess had chosen to wear a long black dress and veil. Her only jewels were a single strand of pearls and a pearl bracelet. The royal couple posed for a traditional photograph with Vatican officials, representatives from the British Embassy, and members of the Swiss Guard before spending twenty minutes with Pope Pius in his private library.
Few details were released about the audience. One Vatican representative simply called the meeting “affable,” adding that the Pope shared “amiable words” with the Princess and the Duke about their children and asked her to send his respects to the King and Queen. Afterward, Elizabeth and Philip toured the Vatican museums, the Sistine Chapel, and St. Peter’s Basilica before heading back to Rome, where the Duke had a scheduled afternoon polo practice.
May 5, 1961: The Queen meets fellow head of state Pope John XXIII
The next meeting between Elizabeth and a pope was a wholly different experience. Ten years later, she was now a monarch meeting a fellow head of state, and the privacy of the 1951 visit was no longer possible. There was a new pope in the Vatican too: Pope John XXIII, who had been elected a few weeks after the death of Pius XII in 1958. The first moments of the official audience, when the Pope received the Queen and the Duke, was televised live by the BBC on May 5, 1961. It was a special occasion—the first time that a sitting British monarch had met with the Pope since the Queen’s grandfather, King George V, had an audience with Pope Pius XI in 1923.
Keep reading with a 7-day free trial
Subscribe to Hidden Gems to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.