Princesses Eugenie and Beatrice are not allowed to wear tiaras. Do you know why?

Meghan wore one on her wedding day, but not every woman in the royal family is allowed to wear a glistening headpiece...
Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie
Getty Images for Ascot Racecourse
Chloe Street28 August 2018

Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie are both granddaughters of HM The Queen. Which means they’re about as blue-blooded as they come.

Yet despite being British princesses, with very close connections to the monarch, neither of them, according to royal convention, are permitted to wear tiaras.

Why? Because they are still unmarried.

In an interview with Town and Country, London jeweller Geoffrey Munn explained: "Any woman may wear one, but ancient tradition has it that they must be a bride or already married.

Kate, Duchess of Cambridge
AFP/Getty Images

"The tiara has its roots in classical antiquity and was seen as an emblem of the loss of innocence to the crowning of love.

"One of the mainstays of European royalty and aristocracy is to do what you have always done, and formal dress, jewellery, and tiaras are just part of this."

Princess Eugenie will likely be the first of the two princesses to don a sparkling headband when she marries her longtime boyfriend Jack Brooksbank on October 12.

Most probably, she’ll choose the tiara her mother, Sarah Ferguson, wore when she married Prince Andrew in 1986. The tiara in question, the York Diamond Tiara, was a gift from the Queen. It was made by British jewellers Garrard, the same house that made Sarah’s engagement ring, and was part of a demi-parure - a set of jewellery comprising three pieces: a necklace, earrings and a bracelet.

Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon 1990
Getty Images

But whilst the no ring, no (head) bling rule generally applies to all females in 'the firm', there have been a couple of notable exceptions. Elizabeth’s only daughter, Princess Anne, wore one at age 17 to the state opening of Parliament, and Princess Margaret wore them on and off throughout her life.

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