Intriguing India - Part V: The More Recent Royal Tours

After our latest post in the Intriguing India series (you can find the previous posts here: Part I, Part II and Part III), which looked back at the official visits undertaken by the Queen, with less than a week to go before the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge depart for Mumbai, it's now time to take a closer look at more recent royal visits, starting with the one made by the Prince and Princess of Wales in February 1992. Prior to the 1992 tour, Prince Charles had already been to India on his own three times: to New Delhi in 1975, in 1980 when he met Mother Teresa and representing the Queen at the funeral of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi in May 1991.

 

The Prince of Wales with Mother Teresa in Calcutta in 1980. It was during this tour that the Prince visited the Taj Mahal and vowed to return one day with his bride. As it happened, the planned visit with Princess Diana didn't go ahead.

Princess Diana wore many magnificent gowns and colourful dresses during the 1992 tour. Below, in a black silk crepe and diamante paste embroidery Catherine Walker evening dress and the Spencer family tiara at a banquet given by Indian Vice-President Shankar Dayal Sharma:

The dress was later sold at the 1997 auction:

 

Receiving a warm welcome from a group of Indian dancers in Hyderabad. The Cambridges' tour will undoubtably provide similar photo opportunities, as per the official press release, they'll see dance and musical performances during their visit to Kaziranga National Park in the state of Assam:

 

 

The Princess met the sisters of Mother Teresa's mission at a shelter for the sick and the homeless in Calcutta:

 

The royal couple posing with the Presidential guard in Delhi:

 

 

Probably the most iconic look from the tour was another Catherine Walker creation: an evening gown of pink wild silk with a long-sleeved bolero jacket. The dress and bolero both have bodices embroidered with sequins, glass beads and gold braid, echoing Mughal embroidery motifs in a sort of diplomatic dressing nod to the host country which we'll surely see repeated in some way or another during the coming tour. The dress was among those auctioned by Christie's in 1997:

 

 

The Princess wore the gown with her emerald and diamond drop earrings...may I just take this opportunity to mention that this tour would be the perfect occasion for Catherine to repeat the stunning emerald demi-parure she debuted in New York City? ;-)

 

A joint visit to the Taj Mahal had been planned, but Prince Charles was due to attend a business leaders's forum in Bangalore, so the Princess ended up going on her own, and the press had a field day with pictures of her sitting alone on a bench in front of the mausoleoum just three days before Valentine's Day. The cracks in the Wales's marriage where already there for all to see. Before stopping at the Taj Mahal, she'd visited children at a Marie Stopes centre in Agra (above).

 

 

The Prince of Wales returned to India on his own eleven years later, in October/November 2003, when he visited New Delhi, Jodhpur, Jaipur and Mumbai. In March 2006 he visited for the first time with the Duchess of Cornwall:

The couple have since returned twice, in October 2010 to attend the Commonwealth Games in Delhi (shown below with President of India Her Excellency Pratibha Devisingh Patil):

and most recently in November 2013. Prince Charles celebrated his 65th birthday on tour, with a party at the British High Commission in Delhi:

Meeting dancers from the Kerala Folklore Theatre and Museum who performed for the royal couple.

As for other members of the Royal Family, the Duke of York undertook a tour of India in 2012 to mark the Queen's Diamond Jubilee. Widely criticized at the time as he flew by private jet, with costs being met by the taxpayer, the tour didn't get off to a particularly auspicious start:

 

Listening to a guide on a visit to the Dharavi slum in Mumbai.

 

The Duchess of York has visited a number of times, both privately to attend a wedding in Rajasthan and in her capacity as founder of Key to Freedom, a business structure for women in vulnerable situations in India who can sell their wares through the British retailer Topshop. She and Princess Eugenie visited together in 2012:

 

 

The Countess of Wessex undertook a trip to India in September 2013 with sight-saving charity ORBIS, and met with children who have been helped by the charity:

 

 

I very much hope you enjoyed this cavalcade through centuries of Anglo-Indian relations!

And now, with only a matter of days left before the start of this latest tour, I'm sure we can all look forward to many more fabulous photo opportunities, glitzy gowns and, in the words of the press release, new memories!

 

 

Regal in Red: the Queen Leads the Royal Family at the Sandringham Christmas Service

First of all, let me say a big Merry Christmas to all of you who are celebrating today!
We're back with our traditional Christmas Day post here at Books, Birkins & Beauty (you can read about last year's Christmas here, 2013 here and 2012 here), for a recap of what the Royals wore in years past!

As usual, the Royals are spending the festive period in Norfolk. The Queen is reportedly hosting at least 29 family members at Sandringham this year (although, unfortunately, no chances of a white Christmas, as the weather has been remarkably mild this year!), while the Cambridges are staying nearby at their newly-refurbished residence at Anmer Hall to celebrate their first Christmas as a family of four.
The whole family gathered for the Christmas Day service at the diminutive 16th century church of St Mary Magdalene, within walking distance of the big house and where Princess Charlotte was christened earlier this year.

 

As was to be expected, there was no sign of either George or Charlotte at church this year, as they're both much too young to sit still through the 45-minute service (Prince William attended for the first time in 1986, when he was 4.5 years old).

 

Senior members of the Royal family made their way to church early this morning for Holy Communion. The Queen wore a bouclé off-white suit and repeated an old favourite, a sumptous mink coat with shawl collar:

 

 

 

Fur proved to be rather popular this year with the Queen, who appeared later, for the main 11 o'clock service, wrapped up warm in a new festive red coat with fur cuffs and collar, and a matching fur-trimmed hat:

 

 

The Duchess of Cambridge was sporting a new outfit, too: she wore a long belted coat by Italian label Sportmax in appropriately Christmassy shades of green, swapping the original belt for a mock-croc one already in her wardrobe and topped off the look with a matching dark green felt hat with flower trim (both pieces I can definitely see recycled to upcoming St Patrick's events). Most exciting of all, though, she wore her acron and oak leaves brooch, thus allowing us a proper look at the piece after its debut in 2012 at the Queen's Diamond Jubilee luncheon:

 

 

The Duchess of Cornwall repeated a well-loved grey coat with Greek key trim and accessorized with pearls and her butterfly brooch:

 

The Countess of Wessex continued the fur theme in a striking pale grey coat with fur collar and geometric hat. I breathed a sigh of relief in seeing her daughter Lady Louise dressed in more age appropriate clothes for once and finally ditching her white thights in favour of less dowdy dark grey ones! You go, Lady Louise! I think there's a real beauty hidden behind those 1930s clothes she usually favours! Also, it was the first time Viscount Severn joined his parents and big sister at church on Christmas Day:

 

 

The Princess Royal was in a pistachio tweed coat and dress with a well-loved feather trimmed hat she most recently wore on 16 June this year at the Ascot races:

 

 

I think both Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie looked very stylish this year:

 

 

At 3 o'clock this afternoon it was time for that veritable British Christmas tradition that is the Queen's Speech (you will find a transcript of the speech here). The Queen selected a white dress she had first worn on a visit to Wales during the 2012 Diamond Jubilee tour of the UK and diamond and aquamarine clips that belonged to the Queen Mother:

 

 

So, which Royal look did you like best this Christmas? Be sure to drop me a comment and let me know! Personally, it's a tough choice between the Countess of Wessex and the Duchess of Cambridge!

UPDATED: The Royal Family and the WI

The Women's Institutes are a British community-based voluntary organization for women, formed in 1915 to revitalise rural communities and encourage women to become more involved in producing food during the First World War. Since then the organisation's aims have broadened and the WI is now the largest voluntary women's organisation in the UK.

The WI has had a long association with the Royal Family, ever since Queen Mary became president of Sandringham WI in 1919, a role subsequently taken on by the Queen Mother, who held the position until her death in 2002.

The Queen and the Queen Mother join WI members at West Newton Village Hall in Norfolk in 1990.

The Queen Mother attending a garden fete held by Hertfordshire WI at Knebworth House, Hertfordshire, in June 1949.
 

 

Guests at the Buckingham Palace garden party held to celebrate the WI's 50th anniversary in 1965.

 

 

The Queen and the Queen Mother visiting Sandringham WI in January 1974.

 

Today, the Queen is president of Sandringham WI and usually pays them an annual visit over the course of her Christmas holidays.

 

 

Clockwise from top left: the Queen arriving at Sandringham WI for her annual visit in 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2015.

 

The Queen, as president, usually wears her WI President's brooch in sterling silver, featuring a Tree of Life motif

 

 

The Duchess of Cornwall, who was apparently inspired to join after watching the the movie Calendar Girls, is a member of Tetbury WI, in Gloucestershire near Highgrove.

 

The Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall meeting the original Calendar Girls in 2005.

 

The Duchess of Cornwall getting down to business during a visit to Lincolnshire South WI.

 

The Countess of Wessex has been a member of Bagshot WI, near her country residence of Bagshot Park, since 2007.

 

 

The Countess of Wessex leaving Bagshot WI after a 90th anniversary commemoration in 2013.

 

The Duchess of Cornwall has recently expressed an interest in joining her local branch of the WI at Anmer in Norfolk. The Princess Royal is also an associate member of her local WI near her country residence of Gatcombe Park in Gloucestershire.

A number of events are planned to celebrate the Women's Insitute centenary, beginning with a garden party at Buckingham Palace on 2 June, hosted by the Duchess of Cornwall, which will also be attended by Princess Alexandra, The Countess of Wessex and The Duchess of Gloucester.

 

The Duchess of Cornwall met the original Calendar Girls again at the garden party (via @BritishMonarchy Twitter feed).

 

Members of the Knapely branch of the Women's Institute made famous in the film 'Calendar Girls', arrive at Buckingham Palace for a special WI centenary Garden Party on 2 June 2015.

The Duchess of Cornwall and Princess Alexandra arrive at the garden party.

The Countess of Wessex (above) and the Duchess of Gloucester (below) chatting to garden party guests.

 

In addition to the garden party, The Queen accompanied by The Princess Royal and The Countess of Wessex will attend the Centenary Annual General Meeting of the National Federation of Women's Institutes (NFWI) at the Royal Albert Hall on 4 June 2015.
For the AGM, the Queen repeated a beautiful powder blue crepe coat by Stewart Parvin, with a Rachel Trevor Morgan straw hat trimmed with silk roses, an ensamble first worn on Easter Sunday 2014.

 

But the Oscar for Royal Recycling this time went to the Princess Royal, who attended the event in a cream suit with burnt orange silk trim worn an incredible 28 years ago (you read that right, 28!) to Trooping the Colour in 1987 - oh, and she accessorized with the exact same brooch as well!

2015 v. 1987

The Countess of Wessex, on the other hand, opted for a white Emilio Pucci dress and a pair of L.K. Bennett 'Harley' heels in beige (with thanks to Anna from My Small Obsessions, more info on the Countess' outfit on her blog here).

 

The cutting of the cake provided some fab photo opportunities:

 

 

Link to the British Monarchy Storify story here.

Daily Mail article on the garden party here and on the AGM here.