According to the Royal Collection Trust, Queen Elizabeth II's Robe of Estate had a border of wheat ears and olive branches, symbolising peace and plenty. This robe, which would have been the last in a series of garments that she wore as part of the Coronation, was embroidered by the Royal School of Needlework, and took two months and 3,500 hours to complete. It's made of purple silk-velvet and measures just over 6.5m from shoulder to train.
For King Charles III's Coronation – which has the codename Operation Golden Orb, and will most likely be a year after his ascension – he will probably wear a set of new robes if he follows tradition. As you might have guessed, according to Historic UK, the Coronation ceremony involves several robes. 'The majority of robes worn at each [Coronation] ceremony have been made new for each monarch; the exception to this being the Supertunica and the Robe Royal which have been worn since the 1821 coronation of George IV.'
In October 1952, Queen Elizabeth asked British couturier Norman Hartnell to create her Coronation gown. The legendary interwar designer already had a close relationship with the royal family; creating the gown for the then-Princess Elizabeth’s wedding five years earlier.
Hartnell set to work, researching at the London Museum and the London Library and then sketching in the seclusion of Windsor Forest. ‘My mind was teeming with heraldic and floral ideas,’ he wrote in his autobiography, Silver and Gold. ‘I thought of lilies, roses, marguerites and golden corn; I thought of altar cloths and sacred vestments; I thought of the sky, the earth, the sun, the moon, the stars and everything heavenly that might be embroidered upon a dress destined to be historic’.
Nine designs were submitted; the Queen’s favourite was a short-sleeved, sweetheart-necked gown embroidered with the emblems of Great Britain. She expressed a desire for colour and the flowers of the Commonwealth to be added. It took eight months to complete and is today part of the Royal Collection.
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