Happy Birthday to Princess Ingrid Alexandra of Norway, who turns 22 today! The accomplished Princess set to be the first Queen Regnant of Norway in centuries, Princess Ingrid Alexandra will one day possess the entirety of the spectacular Norwegian Royal Jewellery Collection, but her current collection includes this heirloom Diamond Rivière!

Boucheron Pearl Tiara | Diamond Rivière | Crown Princess Märtha’s Pearl Earrings | Art Deco Diamond Bracelet | Queen Maud’s Order of Victoria and Albert Bracelet | Ruby Heart Pendant | Pearl Pendant Earrings

When Princess Maud of Wales married Prince Charles of Denmark in 1896, she received a plethora of glittering jewels which included a Pearl Tiara from her parents, the Vifte Tiara from the Rothschilds, a Pearl and Diamond Necklace, a Diamond Tiara from’ Lady and Gentlemen Friends’, as well as two Diamond Rivières, one from her great-great-aunt and godmother the Duchess of Inverness, and another from her parents-in-law, the future King Frederik VIlI and Queen Louise of Denmark.

Princess Maud wore one or both Diamond Rivières on numerous occasions and for several portraits in the early years other marriage, paired with her Pearl Tiara and Diamond Tiara.

Queen Maud continued to be pictured wearing Diamond Rivières, among three in her collection, after becoming the Queen of Norway, including for the Coronation of King Haakon VII of Norway at Nidaros Cathedral in Trondheim in 1906, as well as King Haakon VII’s Silver Jubilee in 1930, and the Coronation of her nephew, King George VI, in 1937.

While it was long believed that Queen Maud’s jewels remained in England after her death and during the Second World War, only being reclaimed during a visit for the Queen’s Coronation in 1953, but Trond Noren Isaksen writes that they were smuggled out of Norway during the Nazi Occupation and only sent to Britain during the communist scare in 1948.

When I wrote my biography of Princess Astrid, «Kvinne blant konger», she told me that the reason why Crown Princess Märtha barely wore any of her mother-in-law’s jewels was that Queen Maud took all her jewels with her to London in the autumn of 1938 to have them cleaned, and after the Queen died during her stay in England, her jewels remained at Windsor Castle until 1953, when Crown Prince Olav, Crown Princess Märtha and Princess Astrid brought them back to Norway after Elizabeth II’s coronation. However, when I wrote my book on Crown Princess Märtha during WWII, «Kronprinsessens krig», I realised that this could not be quite correct, as the diaries of the Marshal of the Court, Peter F. Broch, show that he smuggled Queen Maud’s jewels out of the Palace after the German attack in 1940 and had them sent to Crown Princess Märtha, who at that time was in Sweden.

The answer to how they ended up in Britain can be found in the correspondence between King Olav and Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother in the British Royal Archives to which His Majesty King Charles III has kindly given me access. The answer lies in the war scare of 1948.

In February 1948, the communists seized power in Czechoslovakia, which caused widespread fear that Norway was next on the USSR’s list – indeed, this led to Norway abandoning its neutrality and becoming a founding member of NATO. In the summer, Crown Prince Olav took a large trunk containing his mother’s jewels with him when he and his family travelled to London for the Olympics. Before returning home, he deposited it at the Norwegian Embassy and wrote to the then Queen Elizabeth that he feared they might not be be able to get the jewels out of Norway if they had to flee a second time and asked if she might store them where she kept her own jewels, to which Queen Elizabeth agreed.

Not long afterwards, Crown Princess Martha passed away, and the jewels remained in the vaults for years until the Norwegian Royal jewellery collection was divided up following the wedding of then Crown Prince Harald in 1968. This particular Diamond Rivière was given to Princess Ragnhild along with several other heirloom jewels.

Princess Ragnhild wore this Diamond Rivière with her Boucheron Pearl Circle Tiara and Queen Maud’s Diamond Tiara on numerous occasions from the 1960s up to the 2000s, though she also wore another longer Diamond Rivière, which may have been the one that belonged to her mother, Crown Princess Märtha.

After Princess Ragnhild’s death in 2012, the Diamond Rivière was among the jewels returned to the Norwegian Royal Vaults and not retained by her children. While Princess Ragnhild’s children presented Princess Ingrid Alexandra with Princess Ingeborg’s Boucheron Pearl Circle Tiara, King Harald and Queen Sonja gifted their granddaughter with the Diamond Rivière among several other heirloom jewels on her 18th Birthday in 2022.

Princess Ingrid Alexandra debuted the Diamond Rivière, paired with Crown Princess Märtha’s Pearl Earrings, for King Harald’s 88th Birthday Dinner at the Royal Palace of Oslo last year.

A few months later, the Diamond Rivière was worn with her Boucheron Pearl Circle Tiara, Pearl Earrings, the Order of Victoria and Albert Bracelet and Crown Princess Märtha’s Art Deco Diamond Bracelet for the Icelandic State Visit to Norway.

Princess Ingrid Alexandra also wore the Diamond Rivière with the Boucheron Pearl Circle Tiara, Pearl Earrings and Queen Maud’s Order of Victoria and Albert Bracelet for the French State Banquet at the Royal Palace of Oslo.

More recently, Crown Princess Mette-Marit borrowed the Diamond Rivière and paired it with the Diamond Daisy Bandeau and Princess Ragnhild’s Pearl Brooch for the Parliament Gala at the Royal Palace of Oslo. There is no doubt the heirloom Rivière will be worn for years to come!

Boucheron Pearl Tiara | Diamond Rivière | Crown Princess Märtha’s Pearl Earrings | Art Deco Diamond Bracelet | Queen Maud’s Order of Victoria and Albert Bracelet | Ruby Heart Pendant | Pearl Pendant Earrings

Princess Ingeborg’s Boucheron Pearl Tiara

Ruby Heart Pendant

Diamond Rivière

Crown Princess Märtha’s Pearl Earrings

Queen Maud’s Order of Victoria and Albert Bracelet

Art Deco Diamond Bracelet

Pearl Pendant Earrings

The Norwegian Emerald Parure

Queen Josefina’s Diamond Tiara

Queen Maud’s Pearl Tiara

Queen Alexandra’s Diamond Circlet

Diamond Daisy Bandeau

Norwegian Amethyst Parure

Vifte Tiara

Princess Ingeborg’s Boucheron Pearl Circle Tiara

King Olav’s Gift Tiara

Modern Gold Tiara

Queen Alexandra’s Turquoise Circlet

Vasa Tiara

Queen Maud’s Diamond Tiara

Princess Astrid’s Ruby Aigrette Tiara

Princess Astrid’s Gold Bandeau Tiara

Queen Sophia’s Diamond Bracelet Bandeau