Today in Belgium, King Philippe’s mother, Queen Paola, celebrates her birthday. In her honor, let’s take a closer look today at one of her glamorous gala appearances from the early ’60s, including an inventive “tiara” moment.
On January 13, 1962, the Prince and Princess of Liège stepped on board the SS France in Le Havre to attend the Bal des Petits Lits Blancs, a charity ball that raised money for children’s hospitals. Prince Albert and Princess Paola, the brother and sister-in-law of the King and Queen of the Belgians, were part of a glittering guest list that included celebrities and dignitaries. All had been invited to board the new luxury liner and stay overnight in its state-of-the-art guest cabins after dancing the night away in a trio of grand salons. Guests could also bid on auction items like a mink coat, a sapphire brooch, and an automobile.
In total, 1300 guests attended the event. Among them was another famous Belgian: the actress Audrey Hepburn, who attended with her husband Mel Ferrer. The event included a screening of Hepburn’s most recent film, Breakfast at Tiffany’s, in the ship’s movie theaters.
For the dinner, Princess Paola wore an interesting ensemble featuring a dress covered by a smock-style topper with a bandeau-neckline and a beaded fringe running along its left side. The topper was red, and Paola coordinated by wearing red lipstick and a hair ornament with red gemstone accents.
As she often did in those days, Paola wore an elaborate, towering hairstyle for the black-tie gala. For this occasion, she piled loose curls on top of her head, securing them with a tiara-esque bandeau ornament.
The jewel placed in Paola’s hair is made of different yellow-gold plaques with red gemstone accents. If my memory serves correctly, the piece was a bracelet repurposed as a bandeau for the occasion.
The sheer size of Paola’s hair for the evening is easier to appreciate when seen in profile. The height of these ’60s hairdos is really impressive. Lots of padding there!
The hair held up through the long night, too. Here, its height remains towering as Paola dances with Audrey Hepburn’s husband, the actor Mel Ferrer. The Hepburn-Ferrers and the royal couple would have been able to trade stories about their toddlers during the dinner and dancing. Audrey and Mel’s son, Sean, and Albert and Paola’s son, Philippe, were born just three months apart in 1960. (Philippe is, of course, the present King of the Belgians.) Soon, Albert and Paola would welcome another member to their growing family. Paola was several months pregnant with her second child, Princess Astrid, at the ball. The baby princess made her debut in June 1962.
There were more royal cousins on the ship for the charity ball, too. Here, Audrey Hepburn chats with Prince Alexander of Yugoslavia and his wife, Princess Maria Pia of Savoy. Prince Albert and Princess Maria Pia were first cousins. His father, King Leopold III of Belgium, and her mother, Queen Marie-José of Italy, were brother and sister, both children of King Albert I and Queen Elisabeth of Belgium. Alexander had a similarly glamorous royal lineage. His parents were Prince Paul and Princess Olga of Yugoslavia, making him a descendant of the Serbian, Greek, Danish, and Russian royal families. Princess Marina, Duchess of Kent was his aunt.
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.