She Took The Crown… Without Wearing It! – HT

 

 

 

The woman a king abdicated for a priceless jewel collection. The British Empire once ruled over 25% of the entire world. Its wealth was unimaginable. But there was one woman whose personal worth made the empire looks small. And today we’re looking at the jewelry she wore to prove it.

 This collection boasts not only jewels personally selected by a king for the woman he abdicated the British throne for, but also showcases some of the most exquisite designs from the most renowned 20th century jewelers. Pieces that spoke of his obsession and undying love for her. And in just 10 months on the throne, he gave it all up to be with Wallace Simpson, a divorced American socialite who captured the heart of a king.

 I have found it impossible to carry the heavy burden of responsibility and to discharge my duties as king as I would wish to do without the help and support of the woman I love. >> Those pieces carried intimate engravings marking private milestones in their relationship. Messages of survival and commitment [music] etched during the scandal of their early years.

 A love story that weathered every adversity thrown its way. Wallace Simpson, Duchess of Windsor, was undoubtedly [music] a sensation. To some, she was the calculating seductress who lured Edward VII from his throne. But to others, [music] it was simply the greatest romance ever told. A woman who sacrificed her reputation before the entire world.

 A man who gave up a kingdom. And the more it became them against the rest of the world, the more it became a genuine love affair. The couple first met in 1931 at Burrow Court, a country estate in Leicester. The introduction was made by Lady Thelma Finesse, the prince’s mistress at the time and a close friend of Wallace. And right there, [music] in that moment, the Duke was utterly charmed by Wallace’s elegance and wit.

 The incredible story of a couple deeply in love begins forever intertwined with the history of some of the most magnificent jewelry that remains legendary even today. His obsessional but devotional love for her is something that I cannot comprehend. I cannot comprehend [music] 36 years of marriage to someone and to be that infatuated by them every single [music] day.

She was the scarlet woman who leared Edward VII from his throne. But to others it was the greatest [music] romance. A woman and men who sacrificed everything for each other. The Prince of Wales feathers brooch. The word prince. It was no accident. This was a jewel born in secrecy, [music] commissioned during the hidden days of their courtship.

 A silent declaration from a man who wore the crown of an empire that Wallace Simpson would be his queen, not merely of his heart, but of Britain itself. The brooch bears the three-feathered insignia of the Prince of Wales, one of the most powerful symbols in the British royal tradition. Crafted in platinum and 18 karat gold by the legendary house of Van Clee and Arpels.

 It features three pveset diamond feathers, each one gathering elegantly beneath a diamond crown, the stems adorned with baguette cut diamonds of extraordinary precision. It was not merely jewelry. It was a statement of commitment to her despite royal duties. Prince Edward commissioned this piece at a moment when his world had quietly but irrevocably shifted.

 His previous companions had been set aside. His royal obligations, once paramount, had begun to fade into the background. His life, entirely undeniably, had begun to revolve around one woman, the then Mrs. Ernest Simpson. [music] When the Duchess of Windsor passed, Sures brought her legendary jewelry collection to auction.

 Among the bidders was one of the most celebrated women in the world, Elizabeth Taylor, who reportedly called in her bids poolside. She wanted many pieces that day, but there was one lot she wanted above all others. The Prince of Wales feathers brooch >> thousands. Thank you very much indeed, sir. For 850,000 then for 850,000.

 All finished this time. Au JB. >> She bid $449,625 [music] and it was hers. But the story does not end there. When Taylor arrived to collect her prize, she was quietly informed that she had outbid a very famous and very determined he’d buy her. Curious, she pressed for a name. It was the Prince of Wales, Taylor later revealed.

 He had [music] wanted to buy it for Princess Diana, but I got there first. Diamond bracelet with Latin crosses. By 1934, something had quietly shifted between them. The Prince of Wales and Wallace Simpson had begun stealing away together. long holidays abroad, far from the scrutiny of court and country. And it was during these stolen moments that he began to speak to her, not just in words, but in jewels.

 The first was a charm bracelet, delicate, intimate, [music] and deeply personal. Each piece engraved on the back with a message only the two of them could fully understand. Cryptic to the outside world, but to Wallace, every inscription was a whisper, a memory, a promise. Over the course of a decade, nine gem set Latin crosses would be added to a platinum chain.

 Each one marking a milestone set with sapphires, rubies, emeralds, aquamarines, diamonds, and amethysts. But it was the backs that held the real treasure, dates, private words, and secrets meant only for her. She wore it close to her heartbeat because that is exactly where he intended [music] it to rest. We are two. November 25th, 1934. The first cross was simple, plain platinum.

 No elaborate gemstones, no royal flourish, just two letters [music] and a date. We, Wallace and Edward, St. Wolf Gang Cross, September 22nd, 1935. Set with deep, passionate rubies. [music] This cross was born in the mountains of Austria. The couple had retreated there together, away from the noise of London society. And it was somewhere in that alpine stillness that Edward made a decision that would define the rest of his life.

He wanted to marry her, but fate had other plans. In January 1936, King George V drew his final breath, and Edward, who had spent years chasing love across the continent, was now King of England and Emperor of India. And yet his love for Wallace never faltered. The King’s Cross. March 1st, 1936. Just weeks into his reign, he gave her another cross.

 This one set with baguette diamonds. Precise, brilliant, unbreakable, as if to say, “A crown has not changed what I feel for you.” The bracelet she didn’t miss to wear on her wedding day. It was sold once in 1987 and again in 2010 when it passed into the hands of a global superstar, Madonna >> was always fascinated by the story of the Duke and the Duchess.

 Every time I’d go out to dinner, [music] I’d bring up their name at a dinner party and it would be like throwing a Molotov cocktail into the the onto the table. Suddenly, the table would erupt and everyone would get into an argument about who they were. As I read their story, my feelings toward them [music] kept changing.

 One minute I was, you know, enthralled and swept up in it and then the next minute I I was kind of um irritated with them and thinking of them as superficial and then the next minute I thought, “Oh my god, they’re human beings like all of us.” This guy gave up the throne. What drove him to do that? Wallace Simpsons Van Clee and Apples Ruby Suite.

 A collection that began in March 1936 with a single bracelet during the hushed years of their secret romance and grew into something far [music] greater. Because for Edward, Wallace was never a passing fascination. Even as king of England, his mind rarely lingered on politics or the weight of the monarchy. The woman he simply could not take his eyes off.

 And so just two months into his proclamation as king, he contacted Van Clee and Apparels and personally commissioned a jewelry design for production for Wallace. All while she remained unaware that the most powerful man in the world was envisioning her not as his mistress but as his queen. She enjoyed being the mistress of the Prince of Wales.

 She enjoyed the financial advantages it gave her, the social advantages it gave her, the gifts that were lavished upon her that she could live in the life and the style that she’d always been accustomed to. The first piece to emerge was a ruby and diamond bracelet set with 40 rubies and diamonds.

 The king’s unconditional unwavering love. Yet, it was a small hidden detail that made this piece truly unforgettable. Engraved on the bracelet in Edward’s own handwriting were just two words. Hold tight. A quiet plea. A man asking the woman he loved to never let go. Edward had another surprise in store.

 To celebrate Wallace turning 40 in June 1936, he walked through the doors of Van Clee and Arples with something extraordinary [music] tucked away. A collection of precious stones he had personally acquired during his royal tour of India back in 1921 and 1922 [music] when he was still Prince of Wales. Stones he had held on to for over a decade, as though waiting for exactly the right moment and exactly the right woman.

 But this rare bill shows the king’s [music] gifts that spring cost £16,000. That’s £400,000 [music] today. And yet he was still worried he would lose her. Mrs. Wallace Simpson had been married twice when he met her in 1931. She was an American from Baltimore. The prince’s father, King George V, had her past investigated.

 He concluded she was totally unsuitable to be queen. By 1934, the couple were taking holidays abroad together, and the prince started giving her jewels. First, a charm bracelet. Each piece inscribed with an intimate message. The inscriptions tell us a lot about the relationship, this adoring relationship that the king had for Mrs.

Simpson that’s expressed in those letters as well. These expressions that he used more and more enum, these little private words to each other. And it must have been extraordinary to think that she went out in society as another man’s wife with her husband and yet next to her skin was a jewel which carried this very personal and private inscription.

>> It was when Mrs. Simpson was seen [music] dripping with expensive jewels that London society really began to gossip. Accompanying the necklace was a gift that arrived with the holiday season. A ruby and diamond double holly leaf brooch shaped like two feathered leaves intertwined. Another Christmas present from the king and another masterpiece from Van Clee and Apples.

This brooch held a special distinction. It was among the very first pieces the house ever created using their now legendary mystery set technique. So mesmerizing, in fact, that when the brooch came up for auction at Sures in 1987, part of the celebrated Duchess of Windsor sale, it sold for an astonishing $86,000.

Cartier engagement ring. Well, we all know the exact day when the ring was given to Wallace. >> On the day [music] Mrs. Simpson was granted her divorce in Ipsswitch, she returned to London to dine alone with the king. And that evening, [music] he gave her an emerald he’d been keeping for their engagement.

 The stone was no ordinary gem. It was believed to be cut from one of the world’s most remarkable 19.77 karat emeralds, a jewel once worn by an Indian emperor. The emerald was chosen for its rich, hypnotic green, a color said to perfectly mirror the Duchess’s eyes, making the ring feel like an intimate symbol of devotion. Yet, what makes this piece even more fascinating is that this was not its original setting.

 The ring she wore that night had been commissioned well before the Simpsons divorce was finalized, suggesting that Edward knew the divorce would be finalized on that exact date well in advance. [music] And then there is the inscription, Wallace, we are ours, followed by the date, October 27th, 1936. The very same day her divorce was granted, a pre-planned milestone.

Bracelet Jaratier by Van Clee and Arles. From engagement gift to [music] wedding keepsake. Ordered by the Duke of Windsor during their months apart in the winter of 1936. It was presented to the Duchess to commemorate their French civil marriage [music] celebrated on the 18th of May 1937 and engraved with the words for our contract the 18th of May 1937.

His destination was chate where Wallace was waiting. On the 3rd of June they were married. >> Oh the Duke and Duchess coming out on the chatau steps. Edward and his American bride. The woman for whose love he gave away an empire. Theirs has been called the greatest romance in history. And its climax here in this secluded spot is in vivid contrast to the pump that might have been.

 But they’re supremely happy at last after months of difficulties. The silent almost lifeless grounds of cond at this critical moment in Edward’s life recall to mind the glittering coronation pageantry of last month in London. But Edward staked his crown on love and one the partner of his heart’s desire.

 So they’re happy now amid their closest friends. Herman L. Rogers who gave the bride away and Mayor Ed Metaf the Duke’s Equiry and best man. slit which the Duke himself had helped to design and made. 45 invisibly set sapphires and a subtle diamond strap. It was inscribed for our contract with the date they were given permission to marry in France and a platinum wedding ring inscribed Wallace your David [music] and his wedding present Cartier Flamingo brooch.

While Wallace had long been associated with Cartiier’s Panther jewels, it was a single brooch that would come to define her collection above all else. The now legendary flamingo commissioned by the Duke of Windsor in 1940 as a birthday gift for the Duchess. [music] It was a deeply personal creation designed with her own input and brought to life through a collaboration with celebrated Cartier designer Jean Tusan.

Crafted in platinum, the brooch depicted a whimsical flamingo balanced on one leg. Its body, neck, head, and legs paver set with diamonds. A single sapphire served as its eye. [music] A yellow citrine caught the light at its breast and a blue sapphire suggested a beak caught midspech. Sweeping behind it the tail [music] feathers blazed with a vivid array of emeralds, rubies, and sapphires. Estimated at 1 to 1.

5 million before [music] the sale, the brooch was purchased by Colleexion Catier for £1.7 million. I can’t think of what clear. Here’s a brooch that comes along in 193 right at the end of the art and suddenly you’re into a stylized but basically naturalistic approach which completely breaking traditions of everything.

>> The drapery necklace. Edward gifted Wallace Cartier jewels until the very last days of his life. She was a woman of distinct taste, drawn to modern forms, bold combinations, and pieces that defied convention. And the Duke of Windsor, the man who had surrendered a crown for her, was never anything less than willing to indulge her.

 Cartier was their jeweler of choice, and it was to Cartier they turned in 1947 for what would become one of the most breathtaking [music] pieces in the Duchess’s collection. Wallace had always favored the pairing of amethyst and turquoise, and this necklace was built entirely around that preference. Designed by Cartier in an Indian inspired style, the drapery necklace featured 29 stepcut amethysts, [music] turquoise cababishons, and brilliant cut diamonds with a large heart-shaped amethyst suspended at the front.

 [music] Set in gold, the gemstones hang from a robust ropelike gold chain. The Duke himself sourced every stone, everyone except the turquoise, fit for a queen, even one without a title. Wallace wore it famously in June 1953 to a glamorous charity ball at the Palace of Versailles, one of the great evenings of their social life together.

 Following the Duchess’s death in 1986, [music] the necklace came to auction. The celebrated American divorce lawyer, Marvin Mitchelson, was there with his wife to buy a special necklace, gold, amethyst, turquoise, and diamonds, which cost him 340,000. >> My mother loved amethyst. And a couple days before she died, we were discussing a necklace that was owned by a client of mine, Shakadina Alasi, as a matter of fact.

 And my mother said, Barbarin, if you ever buy me anything, I love amethyst. I said, “Mother, I’m going to get you a beautiful necklace.” Couple days later, she did die and she was 84 and had a wonderful life. And this is a necklace she would have loved. >> The Marriage of the Windsor is widely regarded as one of the great romances of the 20th century.

 No man in modern history had ever surrendered so much for one woman, an empire, all of it, laid down for her. And so on every anniversary, on every occasion that marked their life together, the gifts would come and they would very often be jewels. The Duchess’s collection was unlike any other. Every piece the Duke chose for her carried within it something deeply personal.

 Not merely the weight of precious stones, but the weight of everything he had given up to place them in her hands. The greatest romance of all times. And that brings us to the end of tonight’s jewel journey. A story not simply of sapphires and diamonds, emeralds and gold, but of a love that rewrote history.

 A collection that was in every sense a love story [music] you could hold in your hands. We would love to hear your thoughts. What moved you most about the jewels he gave her? Let us know in the comments below.