Last Monday, I shared the first half of the Royal Women exhibition at the Fashion Museum in Bath. I looked at the pieces of Queen Alexandra (consort to King Edward VII) and Queen Mary (consort to King George V), and what they meant for their own style histories. Today’s post is going to look at the second half of the exhibition, with two more royal women featured. We will start with Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother, and then look at Princess Margaret, two royals that I think all of us are familiar with!
As I chatted about last week, the Royal Women exhibition was created specifically to celebrate royal women who weren’t reigning monarchs. While Queens like Victoria and Elizabeth II are fascinating, they are usually going to be the focus of attention. The wives, mothers, and sisters of monarchs tend not to get as much attention, sadly. However, Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother and Princess Margaret played significant roles in Queen Elizabeth II’s life and reign, and deserve our attention. Both had notable fashion moments, and we are here to celebrate them!
Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother: ‘One of Us’
Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother, or “Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, was born in 1900, the child of an aristocratic Scottish family. Her position took her into royal circles and, after a period of devoted courtship, she accepted a proposal from Prince Albert… The marriage was seen as a modernising step for the British monarchy since Elizabeth was not a princess.” (Royal Women, Fashion Museum Bath, p.22) The Duke and Duchess of York were suddenly called to duty when Edward VIII abdicated in December 1936, and Prince Albert was crowned on 12 May 1937, to be known as King George VI. He died at a young age in 1952, leaving Elizabeth to re-establish herself in a new role as Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother. She lived to the very respectable age of 101 in March 2002.
Norman Hartnell was the Queen Mother’s go-to designer. She brought Hartnell into the royal fold, and wore his designs for much of her adult life. “[U]nlike her mother-in-law, she loved fashion. With regular designer Norman Hartnell, she created a distinctive ‘look’ that was both stylish and fun: glittering ball gowns for evening, with big crinoline skirts to accentuate the waist; soft past colours for day wear. Conscious of her diminuitive stature, they used hats, high heeled shoes, and calf-length coats to create an illusion of height.” (Royal Women, FMB, p. 24) As someone who is quite short and petite herself, I loved learning that although she was a wife and mother of a queen, she still had problems like wanting to be taller. The dresses don’t look overly petite in person, so I think that they really accomplished their goal. Thankfully for all of us, Her Majesty The Queen was willing to lend the dress to the Fashion Museum for the exhibition!
The other piece that was included for the Queen Mother was another Hartnell dress. This dress is made of “[g]rey silk satin with bold patterns of beadwork embroidery. The crystals were produced by… Swarovski and were their first and most popular design, which they christened Article No. 1. For state occasions, a blue ribbon sash – pinned with badges and orders – was worn over the left shoulder and secured at the hip.” (Royal Women, FMB, p. 26) It looks almost a pale gold in person, and although the bodice seems quite simple, the skirt is dazzling.
Princess Margaret: In the Spotlight
“Princess Margaret was the daughter of a king, the sister of a queen, and a princess in her own right. As such, she had to live up to complex, and often contradictory, public expectations. Her glamorous, fashionable image made her a great favourite with the press: in the austere post-war years, the activities of the ‘Margaret Set’ were a source of fascination to millions.” (Royal Fashion, FMB, p. 30) When I was younger, I didn’t think that Princess Margaret was particularly glamorous. I now think that it was only because she wasn’t at a lot of royal events that I saw when I was a child (which weren’t a ton), and in the last 10 years, I’ve learned a lot about her. She was impressively fashionable, as one of the first British supporters of Dior, and always made a statement with her clothing.
This cream Dior day dress is simple but beautiful! It is very similar in shape and silhouette to the cream with purple floral print chiffon dress in the Garden section of Dior: Designer of Dreams. Because she didn’t feel bound to British designers in the same way that her mother and sister did, “she was devoted to the French designer, Christian Dior, whose New Look she quickly adopted. Dior himself described the young Princess Margaret as ‘a real fairy princess, delicate, graceful, exquisite.” (Royal Women, FMB, p. 32) His New Look silhouette suited her figure well, and she wore Dior frequently.
Princess Margaret also wore several Norman Hartnell dresses. This particular pale yellow, frey, and pale peach figured silk dress, that was ruched at the hips with a sweetheart neckline is a classic Hartnell piece. And this black lace over pale silk dress from Hartnell is another gorgeous evening gown that suited Margaret perfectly. Margaret seemed to favourite the sweetheart neckline! It isn’t as common a neckline today (other than in bridesmaid and wedding dresses)- I think that it may be because it takes more time and skill to make, meaning that the consumer needs to pay more. Luckily for us, budget was not a constraint for Princess Margaret. And these two dresses, and the next, were actually gifts to the Fashion Museum from Princess Margaret herself. She knew that they should be preserved!
Although this is a day dress, it is one of my favourites in the entire Royal Women exhibition! The red and white striped cotton dress is simple but beautiful. This dress really emphasises that a dress doesn’t need to be elaborate to be gorgeous, and makes me think that Margaret’s fashion icon status had a lot to do with her ability to pick styles that suited her. The small waist, the full skirt, the delicate wrists, it creates a very specific silhouette. This cotton dress is perfect for a summer day!
Sophie, Countess of Wessex
This last ensemble in the exhibition was added after it opened, but I think it is the perfect capstone. This is Sophie’s ensemble from the 2011 royal wedding, and she selected it herself to be included in the exhibition. I did remember it from watching the wedding myself (and rewatching it countless times), but I had no idea that the embroidery work was so elaborate on the sleeves and that the belt was so detailed. Although I think that for the type of event it was, that was the right choice! (As we learned from Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie, the press and public can be ruthless. Understated is the way to go!)
My personal favourite element of the ensemble was her hat. Jane Taylor is such a talented milliner, and unfortunately, most of the quietly beautiful pieces of headwear were ignored for Beatrice and Eugenie’s Philip Treacy hats. This feather and rose designed cocktail hat suited Sophie so well, and I think ages incredibly well.
What did you think of the Royal Women exhibition at the Fashion Museum, Bath? Which royal women wore your favourite pieces?
Cheers,
The Historian
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