Royal family
Here’s more about a stunning piece of jewelry King Charles III purchased for his wife that previously belonged to another king’s mistress.
King Charles and Queen Camilla (formerly Camilla Parker Bowles) have been married since 2005, but they met and began dating more than five decades ago. Their relationship was halted when then-Prince Charles went overseas with the Royal Navy in the ’70s. However, they began seeing each other again during Charles’ marriage to Princess Diana, making Camilla his mistress for several years.
But Camilla wasn’t the only member of her family who became a mistress, and Charles reportedly embarked on a quest to find and buy up some of the jewels that belonged to Camilla’s relative and gift them to his wife.
Queen Camilla’s family member who was the mistress of a former king
Charles’ great-great-grandfather, Edward VII, had an affair with Camilla’s great-grandmother, Alice Keppel. During Charles and Camilla’s first meeting, the future queen joked about that saying: “My great-grandmother was the mistress of your great-great-grandfather. I feel we have something in common.”
King Edward VII had more than one mistress but Alice was his last as she was with him for 12 years through his coronation in 1902. They were still together when he died in 1910 and she was reportedly at his deathbed.
Edward VII gave Alice plenty of sparkling jewels over the years including a stunning diamond tiara, which the current king tracked down and gifted Camilla.
According to the jewelry experts at U.K. retailer Steven Stone: “The Keppel Tiara is a family heirloom that belongs personally to Queen Camilla. The tiara originally belonged to her great-grandmother, Alice Keppel, who received it as a gift from King Edward VII — the former King purchased the piece in Paris in the early 1900s.
“Made of gold and platinum, the tiara is set with diamonds and synthetic rubies. In the language of precious stones, the combination of rubies and diamonds means enduring love — making it a sentimental gift from King Edward VII to his most celebrated mistress.”
How much the Keppel tiara is worth now
While the tiara is exquisite, it’s not one of the most expensive pieces in the queen’s collection. In fact, it’s not even close.
Zack Stone, managing director for Steven Stone, said: “With royal pieces containing some of the most impressive stones, it’s interesting that the rubies are synthetic. Though this may be explained by the fact that synthetic tones were relatively new at the time, thus, in high demand. Though oozing with history, the Keppel Tiara is one of Camilla’s least valuable tiaras. I’d estimate it to be worth £35,000 ($43,000).”
Some of the pricier pieces Camilla owns are her engagement ring from Charles, which once belonged to the Queen Mother and is worth around $225,000, and the Cubitt-Shand Tiara, which previously belonged to Alice’s daughter, Sonia Keppel, and is estimated to be worth upwards of $250,000.
