Queen Elizabeth's Wedding Gift From One Of The Most Richest Men in the World Revealed

Queen Elizabeth II married Prince Philip at Westminster Abbey on November 20, 1947. She accented her handmade white wedding gown by Norman Hartnell with a tiara of pearls and diamonds. However, Her Majesty personally selected the most expensive and unique wedding gift from the last Nizam of Hyderabad, Asaf Jah VII. The Nizam left instructions with the London-based Cartier firm that Princess Elizabeth could choose her present because he could not attend the royal wedding. The future queen chose a platinum jewelry set with approximately 300 diamonds now worth over £66 million.

According to Regal Fille, the entire gift set consisted of an English rose-inspired necklace and diamond tiara. Originally made with 46 diamonds, the necklace was designed in 1930 and features a lengthy chain of 38 diamonds with a platinum-based diamond-encrusted clasp. The royal design also comes with a pear-shaped drop and a detachable double-drop pendant set with 13 emerald-cut diamonds in the center. 

“The original design purchased by Cartier in 1937 featured a central pendant of three drops flanked on each side by two pendants of two drops. Nine drops were subsequently removed to design a head ornament (not part of the set Princess Elizabeth selected) and the necklace in present form came into existence in 1936,” Hugh Roberts, author of Queen’s Diamond described the historic piece in his book. 

As per the Express, the Nizam of Hyderabad was among the richest men in the world in 1937 and well-known for his thrift. The title of "Faithful Ally of the British Government" was bestowed upon the Nizams in recognition of their involvement in the Indian Rebellion of 1857 and the Second and Third Anglo-Mystore Wars. With his bequest, Asaf Jah VII wished to give the future queen the exceptional chance to create a one-of-a-kind piece of jewelry that would last a lifetime. 

Queen Elizabeth was known for her love for brooches hence she felt that the equity stones that were initially inserted into the center of the headdress could be worn for longer, therefore she made three detachable brooches from the tiara during her later years. The necklace has been worn by the Queen numerous times since 1947. However, the matching tiara was last seen in 1952 when Her Majesty attended the Royal Variety Performance. 

In recent times, the Princess of Wales (then the Duchess of Cambridge) was spotted wearing the Nizam of Hyderabad necklace while visiting the National Portrait Gallery in 2014. Catherine paired the stunning piece with a custom Jenny Packham Ink Blue Silk Tulle Gown. The Queen loaned her the exquisite necklace once again during the 2019 Diplomatic reception. 

While describing the stately royal jewel, Daena Borrowman, marketing manager at Jewellerybox said, “The magnificent Nizam of Hyderabad Necklace, considered to be the most expensive piece of royal jewelry in the world, is worth more than £66million. It was a wedding gift to Princess Elizabeth from the Nizam of Hyderabad, one of the richest people in the world. The Nizam is said to have generously instructed Cartier to let the bride-to-be pick anything she wished from their collections, to which the young princess chose a tiara with three detachable flower brooches and what we now know as the Nizam of Hyderabad Necklace."