DARING KATE’S CHARM OFFENSIVE
Tiara and a plunging dress as she takes on Spain’s fashion queen
Setting aside squabbles past and present, europe’s most senior and junior monarchs clinked glasses at Buckingham Palace last night, toasting shared bonds of friendship and even a ‘special relationship’.
the state banquet for the King and Queen of Spain was not merely a diplomatic landmark but also a dazzling display of the sort of jewellery we only tend to see when two monarchies get together.
While our Queen wore the tiara she herself commissioned using the aquamarines given to her by the people of Brazil, matching her satin aquablue brocade state dress, Queen Letizia of Spain wore the Fleur de Lys tiara first worn by Spain’s British-born Queen Victoria eugenia in 1906.
Her stunning red gown was a nod to the Spanish state colours. For her part, the Duchess of Cambridge wore a pink Marchesa gown, along with the diamond and pearl Lover’s Knot tiara, a great favourite of Prince William’s late mother, Diana, Princess of Wales.
this is the first state visit by an eU head of state since last year’s Brexit referendum. As the UK begins to recalibrate its relationship with europe, the monarchy will, increasingly, be called upon to apply the sort of soothing balm we saw yesterday.
From the full clanking splendour of a Household Cavalry carriage procession to tea with the Prince of Wales and even a Palace display of sherry, Britain was laying it on thicker than the sturdiest Andalusian gazpacho. Of gibraltar there was no explicit mention, let alone the Armada.
the culmination was last night’s state banquet as King Felipe appeared proudly wearing his latest gift from the Queen. in addition to receiving a magnificent book of prints from the Royal Archives, the King had been made an honorary Knight of the Order of the garter.
As well as being europe’s newest monarch (with just three years on the throne), the 49-year-old King is also the tallest – at 6ft 5ins. Last night, he towered over his host as he saluted her as ‘an example for the entire world’ in the year of her Sapphire Jubilee. Britain and Spain, he said, had a ‘special relationship which, through innumerable human, social and economic exchanges has resulted in a strong shared vision of the most important challenges the world must address’. the nearest he got to the tricky topics of gib and Brexit was a pledge ‘to address any issues on which we may disagree with the greatest goodwill.’
the Queen saluted Spain as ‘reliable partners and friends’, declaring that ‘a relationship like ours, founded on great strengths, will ensure that both our nations prosper, now and in the future, whatever challenges arise’. Both spoke warmly of each other’s expats.
earlier, the King had kissed his distant cousin on both cheek and hand as they met at the formal welcome on Horse guards Parade.
As he has done on every state visit anyone can recall, it was the Duke of edinburgh who accompanied the King on his inspection of the guard of Honour, formed by the irish guards. the Duke will no longer be expected at such events following his retirement from public duties in the autumn. Do not
‘The greatest goodwill’
be surprised if he appears at the next one, however. Yesterday, he stood almost as ramrod straight as the guards.
the carriage procession was enormous, thanks to the huge ministerial entourage accompanying the King on his visit. the Spanish have packed the political kitchen sink for this trip.
the welcome lunch was followed by the exchange of gifts. While the King received his book and garter, Queen Letizia was given a cashmere scarf.
there were similar gifts in return. For Prince Philip, a cloak of Merino wool and for the Queen, a book of 67 postcards. these were, in fact, love letters between the Spanish King Alfonso Xiii
and his Balmoral-born sweetheart, Princess Victoria Eugenie of Battenberg (Queen Victoria’s granddaughter) whom he met on his 1905 visit to Britain.
This love-match featured prominently in the private exhibition which the Queen had arranged for her guests in the Picture Gallery. It included prints of royal visits going back to the reign of Henry VIII, right up to photographs from the Queen’s visit to Spain in 1988.
Most of the items on display belong to the Royal Collection but the Duke of Edinburgh had lent a prized specimen from his own collection – a Salvador Dali watercolour. Based on the British coat of arms, it features the British Crown looking suspiciously like the Rock of Gibraltar.
Alongside it was a display of sherry. It used to be a tradition, until 1790, that the Poet Laureate received an annual butt of sherry. Since that equals 720 bottles of the stuff, it’s surprising that any of them got round to producing any verse. However, the Sherry Institute of Spain kindly revived the tradition for Ted Hughes in 1984 and still does the same for his successors.
There was no sherry on the menu at last night’s state banquet but there were debuts for two younger members of the Royal Family. Prince Harry was included in the Royal Procession into dinner, escorting the Marchioness of Cholmondeley, wife of the Lord Great Chamberlain.
Also present was Lady Gabriella Windsor, accompanying her mother, Princess Michael of Kent, in the absence of Prince Michael.
A previous Queen Elizabeth might have enjoyed ‘singeing the King of Spain’s beard’. This King of Spain happens to have a beard, too. But today’s Queen Elizabeth and her family are under strict Foreign Office orders to stroke it.