A Parade of Glittering Royal Tiaras to Celebrate a New Reign in Luxembourg

Tonight, Grand Duke Guillaume and Grand Duchess Stéphanie of Luxembourg hosted the first gala dinner of his new reign, welcoming tiara-wearing family members and neighbors to a glittering banquet at the Grand Ducal Palace.

Grand Duke Guillaume was in uniform for this evening’s white-tie banquet, which was attended by family members and dignitaries from Luxembourg and the European community, plus the heads of state of Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, and France.

Perhaps surprisingly, Grand Duchess Stéphanie repeated the same light purple gown and diamonds that she wore earlier in the day for her father-in-law’s abdication ceremony and her husband’s swearing-in ceremony.

Stéphanie did make one alteration to her ensemble, placing the Belgian Scroll Tiara in her hair for the banquet. The tiara, which dates to 1953, was a wedding gift to Guillaume’s grandmother, Princess Joséphine-Charlotte of Belgium, from a French bank. More recently, it has been a particular favorite of Grand Duchess Maria Teresa.

Tonight’s banquet marks the first time that Stéphanie has been photographed in the tiara, though we saw her wear it yesterday in a new portrait commissioned by the court. With the tiara, Stéphanie repeated the same diamond jewelry that she wore earlier in the day. Her diamond earrings are Lannoy family heirlooms, while her diamond bracelets come from the Luxembourgish royal jewelry collection.

Grand Duchess Maria Teresa wore a leaf-printed dress and jewels with mixed, colorful gemstones. She paired the Grand Duchess Adelaide Tiara with emerald and diamond earrings and a large Art Deco emerald and diamond brooch, which she’s been wearing for gala events since before she became Grand Duchess herself.

Guillaume and Stéphanie’s sister-in-law, Princess Claire, arrived for the banquet wearing a light green gown with jewels from the family’s extensive emerald collection. She was accompanied by her husband, Prince Félix, and her brothers-in-law, Prince Louis, Prince Sébastien, and Nicolas Bagory. (Princess Alexandra, who is expecting her second child, does not appear to have attended the dinner.)

For the first time, she wore the Chaumet Emerald Tiara that was made during the reign of Grand Duchess Charlotte. It features an enormous cabochon emerald nestled in an Art Deco diamond design. With the tiara, Claire wore a pair of diamond and emerald earrings that belonged to Grand Duchess Joséphine-Charlotte’s beloved mother, Queen Astrid of Belgium.

Grand Duke Guillaume’s aunts also wore sparkling tiaras from the family collection for the dinner. Archduchess Marie-Astrid arrived wearing the Chaumet Choker Tiara, a delicate piece that can also be removed from its frame and worn as a choker-style necklace.

Marie-Astrid opted not to add the tiara’s optional pearl toppers, and she kept the all-diamond theme going with a lovely pair of diamond drop earrings.

Princess Margaretha of Liechtenstein wore a convertible sapphire and diamond tiara that belonged to her mother, Grand Duchess Joséphine-Charlotte. The bandeau-style tiara can also be worn as a bracelet, and the central floral element can be removed and worn as a brooch.

Margaretha paired the convertible sapphire and diamond tiara with a pair of sapphire and diamond earrings.

Countess Diane, the wife of Prince Jean of Luxembourg, selected another suite of jewelry linked to the late Grand Duchess Joséphine-Charlotte. This parure of diamond and aquamarine jewels, including a bandeau-style tiara, earrings, and necklace, were acquired during Joséphine-Charlotte’s tenure as Luxembourg’s Grand Duchess.

Princess Sibilla arrived on the arm of Prince Guillaume, wearing a light purple gown with diamonds and rubies.

Sibilla chose her own Art Deco-style diamond tiara for the dinner, paired with a suite of ruby and diamond jewels. Her diamond crescent brooch, I believe, comes from Grand Duchess Joséphine-Charlotte’s jewelry collection.

Here’s one more look at Sibilla’s jewels. She wore the full setting of the tiara for this occasion, but it can also be worn in a smaller, fringe-style setting.

Queen Mathilde of the Belgians was elegant in a dark red gown, worn with the insignia of the Order of the Gold Lion of the House of Nassau.

With the dress, she wore a tiara that originally belonged to Grand Duke Guillaume’s great-grandmother: the Nine Provinces Tiara, one of the wedding gifts presented to Queen Astrid of Belgium. For this occasion, she chose the piece’s low bandeau setting. She added even more sparkle with her diamond ribbon earrings and a diamond necklace from her collection, as well as Queen Fabiola’s diamond and ruby bracelet.

Queen Máxima of the Netherlands opted for a dramatic midnight blue ensemble for the dinner. Her modern gown contrasted beautifully with the gold sash of the Order of the Gold Lion of the House of Nassau.

Máxima amped up the drama by wearing one of the largest tiaras in the Dutch royal vaults: Queen Emma’s Sapphire Tiara, a veritable cathedral of a diadem. She paired it with sapphire and diamond earrings made from stones that belonged to Queen Wilhelmina, as well as the family’s elaborate diamond and sapphire bow brooch that also came from Wilhelmina’s collection.

The heirs to the Belgian and Dutch thrones, the Duchess of Brabant and the Princess of Orange, were dazzling in sparkling evening gowns and jewels. Princess Elisabeth wore a silver dress from Jenny Packham with the sash and star of the Order of Leopold, while Princess Amalia glittered in a green Monique Lhuillier gown, worn with the insignia of the Order of the Gold Lion of the House of Nassau.

Princess Elisabeth sparkled in an antique diamond tiara that she received from her parents as an eighteenth-birthday gift back in 2019. For the banquet in Luxembourg, she paired the tiara with diamond earrings borrowed from her mother and diamond bracelets.

Princess Amalia added even more bejeweled splendor to her ensemble with several pieces of jewelry from the Dutch royal collection. The spotlight of the ensemble was Queen Emma’s Diamond Tiara, which dates to 1890. She wore the tiara with her mother’s diamond and emerald earrings, plus more heirloom emeralds from the family vaults, including the brooch and bracelet from the Dutch Emerald Parure and the enormous emerald cabochon pendant that belonged to Queen Wilhelmina.

Grand Duchess Stéphanie’s family was also well represented at the banquet. Her eldest brother, Count Jehan of Lannoy, arrived with his wife, Countess Béatrice. She wore a floral headpiece rather than a tiara, but her bright blue topaz earrings added an extra bejeweled touch.

Next, Count Christian and Countess Luísa of Lannoy arrived. She wore a small diamond tiara with pearl earrings and a diamond brooch for the occasion.

Grand Duchess Stéphanie’s sister, Nathalie, arrived with her husband, John Hamilton. Nathalie wears the Lannoy Tiara, which many will recognize as the tiara that Stéphanie wore on her wedding day in 2012.

Here’s a closer look at the tiara from inside the palace ahead of the dinner. Nathalie’s diamond necklace also comes from the Lannoy family collection.

And here are even more members of the Lannoy family: Count Amaury and Countess Astrid of Lannoy, Isabelle and Jean-Charles de la Court, and Count Olivier and Countess Alice of Lannoy. The diamond brooch worn by Countess Alice is, I think, the same one that Stéphanie’s late mother, Countess Alix, wore for Guillaume and Stéphanie’s engagement announcement in 2012.