Today marks the 135th Anniversary of the Birth of Queen Louise of Sweden, who was born on this day in 1889! The Battenberg Princess who became a Lady and then married the widower future King of Sweden, despite frequently declaring that she would ‘never marry a king or a widower’, Queen Louise possessed the magnificent Swedish Royal Jewels, which included the magnificent Swedish Diamond Chain!

Braganza Tiara | Leuchtenberg Sapphire Parure | Queen Sofia’s Nine Prong Tiara | Baden Fringe Tiara | Diamond Tiara | Aquamarine Bandeau Tiara | Pink Topaz Parure | Napoleonic Amethyst Parure | Hesse Emerald Brooch | Karl Johan Earrings | Sapphire Spray Brooch | Diamond Stomacher Necklace | Swedish Processional Necklace | Queen Josefina’s Five Pearl Brooch | Swedish Diamond Chain | Seed Pearl Brooch 

The massive Swedish Royal Collections has almost a dozen Diamond Rivières of different sizes and lengths, but this Diamond Chain is composed of relatively medium-sized diamonds and can be worn in several lengths but it the longest of the Diamond Rivières. The exact origin of the Chain is unknown but it may be among the historic fideicommissum of jewels that King Karl XIV Johan established for the Queen’s disposal, though it dot not appear in public until the 1920s.

The then Crown Princess Louise wore the Collet Diamond Chain on numerous occasions through the 1920s and 30s, paired with the Braganza Tiara, Queen Sofia’s Nine Prong Tiara, the Leuchtenberg Sapphire Parure and also her Diamond Tiara, with notable appearances including the Wedding Gala of Prince Gustav Adolf of Sweden and Princess Sibylla of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha in 1932, for Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark and Princess Ingrid of Sweden’s Wedding Gala in Stockholm in 1935, Coronation of King George VI at Westminster Abbey in 1937, the Coronation Gala in London in 1937.

While fashions changed, Queen Louise continued to wear the Collet Diamond Chain through the 1950s and 1960s, usually paired with the Braganza Tiara or Queen Sofia’s Nine Prong Tiara, like for the Swedish State Opening of Parliament in 1951, the Swedish State Visit to Denmark in 1952, and the Swedish Opening of Parliament in 1962 among others.

After Queen Louise’s passing in 1965, and especially after the death of her mother, Princess Sibylla, in 1972, Princess Christina served as the First Lady of the Swedish Court first for her grandfather and then for her brother, King Carl XVI Gustaf, and thus wore the Collet Diamond Chain with Queen Sofia’s Nine Prong Tiara and the Baden Fringe Tiara on a handful of occasions, most notably her King Gustaf VI Adolf’s 90th Birthday Banquet in 1972.

In 1975, the Diamond Chain was also worn by Princess Margaretha with the Baden Fringe Tiara for the Swedish State Visit to Britain in 1975.

The following year, the Collet Diamond Chain was worn by the appeared on the soon-to-be Queen Silvia, paired with the Connaught Diamond Tiara and Karl Johan Earrings for her Wedding Gala at the Royal Opera in Stockholm in 1976, on the eve of her Wedding to King Carl XVI Gustaf.

Fashions soon changed, and long Diamond Chains were out of style, but instead, Queen Silvia occasionally wove the Collet Diamond Chain through her hairstyle for Gala Occasions, like when it was worn with Queen Sofia’s Nine Prong Tiara for the Nobel Prize in 1989, or with the Leuchtenberg Sapphire Parure for the 2001 Nobel Prize Ceremony.

A few years later, the Collet Diamond Chain was worn in two rows as a Tiara by Crown Princess Victoria  at the King’s Dinner for Nobel Laureates at the Royal Palace of Stockholm in 2008.

Princess Madeleine also wore the Collet Diamond Chain as a Tiara at the King’s Dinner for Nobel Laureates in 2009.

Crown Princess Victoria has rarely worn her hair down over the years, so it was a surprise to see her wear the Diamond Chain as a Tiara for a portrait taken at some point in the late 2000s. The Collet Diamond Chain has not been publicly worn in recent years, but we hope it makes a reappearance soon, in any form!

Braganza Tiara | Leuchtenberg Sapphire Parure | Queen Sofia’s Nine Prong Tiara | Baden Fringe Tiara | Diamond Tiara | Aquamarine Bandeau Tiara | Pink Topaz Parure | Napoleonic Amethyst Parure | Hesse Emerald Brooch | Karl Johan Earrings | Sapphire Spray Brooch | Diamond Stomacher Necklace | Swedish Processional Necklace | Queen Josefina’s Five Pearl Brooch | Swedish Diamond Chain | Seed Pearl Brooch 

Braganza Tiara