00:04Hello, I'm Hamish Bowles, and we're at Buckingham Ballast, and I'm here to tell you my objects
00:12of affection drawn from Queen Elizabeth II's Treasury of Clothing.
00:31Well, these three dresses by Smith & Co, they're made from Liberty fabric, of course.
00:38It was quite a look that the young princesses obviously wore as children, these simple cotton dresses.
00:46I am completely captivated by their bloomers, their longer puffed knickers.
00:53The bloomers are very practical because it just gives them some modesty, I suppose.
00:58Particularly, you know, in childhood, playing with the corgis and the doggies,
01:03and just having a kind of carefree childhood as was possible for the two young princesses.
01:12Here we have dresses for Princess Elizabeth and Princess Margaret,
01:17and astonishingly they were crafted and sent from Paris by Lanvin.
01:23Jean Lanvin being the first couturier to design clothing for children, so far as I'm aware.
01:28I also think this is fascinating. It was lengthened because she obviously must have liked it.
01:35Yes, I think that's such a lovely part of the history of the piece, and it has a charm.
01:40And I wanted to introduce the idea of Parisian couture, even though really, from here on in, everything is British.
01:53This was worn in South Africa. There are four of these velvet dresses.
01:59I think it's fascinating that you have this, which is 1947, and these, which are just a little bit later.
02:07I'm so happy to make this sort of contrast, as you say, because we see everything about that sort of
02:14mid, almost to late 40s shape, this much slimmer silhouette.
02:19And then suddenly everything changes, and the details on these are so exquisite.
02:25I like the fact that each one has just a very slightly different fastening, but everything is so carefully thought
02:31out.
02:32And the colours, I think, are also quite important, because at this time Hartnell says that Princess Elizabeth made it
02:39clear that she wished to wear stronger, darker colours.
02:44Oh, really?
02:44That's why I feel this moment is about the princess sort of establishing her own style.
02:52We're looking at Princess Elizabeth's wedding dress, which is from 1947, and it was a creation by Norman Hartnell.
03:01It was greeted with a rapture, I suppose, by the public, because one had just come out of the wall,
03:09and everything was rationed, and no one really had a dress like this.
03:15So it was magical.
03:17I think it still has this sort of breathtaking quality.
03:21Yes.
03:26You should get the shoes. I think that's just so divine.
03:35At the time of her father's accession, she became heir presumptive.
03:40That was such a moment in history and its country.
03:44There was this, you know, fascination for the young princess.
03:51Her father was clearly unwell.
03:55While she was at the beginning of what was to be a global tour, and she was in Kenya, I
04:02think.
04:02That's right.
04:03She discovered that he'd died.
04:09And then we arrive at the moment of her coronation.
04:13It is just incredible.
04:17It takes your breath away.
04:18Sparkles.
04:19Norman Hartnell created, with her involvement, this spectacular coronation dress.
04:26Didn't Hartnell have the symbols of Wales, Scotland and England and Ireland?
04:34The addition of these details was to represent the dominions of which, of course, she was then Queen.
04:40Yes.
04:40It was executed in these beautiful colours, which give this lively freshness to these sort of, almost like cornucopias of
04:49embroidery, which, you know, save so much.
05:00So here we're looking at William Dargy's amazing portrait of Queen Elizabeth II, painted right at the beginning of her
05:06reign.
05:06This is one painted specially for her and presented to her in 1957.
05:11And this became the official portrait of the Queen in Australia.
05:14And the reason it's important in the context of her wardrobe is because she's wearing her famous wattle dress.
05:21Wattle being the national emblem of Australia.
05:24And the little sparkles and the flower shaped sequins and little pearls.
05:30It just, you can imagine it sort of really capturing the light and reflecting the sort of twinkle all around.
05:35Exactly.
05:36She always wanted her designers to incorporate something for the host nation.
05:43And this is a remarkable example of that.
05:47Well, this was Princess Margaret's wedding in 1960.
05:52It's quite a statement, isn't it?
05:54And it's just this very interesting turning point, 1960 and sort of counterculture.
06:01And the last royal wedding for which women had to wear long dresses.
06:07That's right.
06:08Which is kind of a crazy mixture because you have these afternoon hats and then this.
06:15I mean, it's like going into the 18th century almost with the gloves.
06:19I just so wanted to put it all together.
06:22And by having the sketch, it gives this wonderful kind of atmosphere.
06:26And to see that translated from the page into the actual piece, it's quite rare to be able to do
06:33that.
06:33And I think that very distinctive silhouette and the fact that Hartnell managed not to include any embellishment.
06:40Yes.
06:41So there's something reflecting back, but it's a moment where things change.
06:48This was the beginning of the sixties, obviously.
06:51Her Majesty was carrying more than a trace of the fifties with her.
06:56We have one by Hardy Amies showing his absolute fascination and love of tailoring.
07:01And then this almost crinoline skirted gown by Norman Hartnell from the 1961 tour wardrobe to India, Pakistan and Nepal.
07:10Something about the fabric, I think, could indicate that perhaps this was really thought through as a textile that would
07:16resonate with Indian culture.
07:19I mean, I'm sure it's not an actual Indian textile.
07:22It's almost certainly French, I would have thought.
07:24But it has this sort of volume as well, which is kind of Balenciaga.
07:28Yes, this is Hardy Amies, who was a bit more subdued than Hartnell.
07:37And he was looking at Balenciaga and Chiboshi.
07:42So this is off-duty style, very distinctive.
07:45This combination of tweed and tartan, the skirt made by Kinloch Anderson, the tartan makers in Scotland.
07:51And the jacket by Driscoll, who was the tailor at Hartnell in their forties and up to the early fifties.
07:59Yes, then set up independently and the Queen continued to go to him.
08:03But I think these showed the way, even off-duty, there's a kind of formality to the clothing.
08:08But there's something perhaps about it that, especially when we look at the portraits, the clothing gives that sense of
08:14confidence.
08:14It was also remarkably close to what she wore as a girl, kilts and the formal jackets.
08:22Exactly. You see that same trait going through so much part of her life.
08:27This is great, this dress, this ensemble.
08:31I love it, actually.
08:33In fact, the wardrobe that Angela Kelly created for the Diamond Jubilee, I think, was so sort of coherent and
08:40well thought through.
08:42The Queen looked absolutely radiant. It was such an important moment.
08:46She did.
08:47And this piece, of course, worn for the river pageant where the weather wasn't as kind as it might have
08:53been.
08:54Nonetheless, it's survived unscathed and there's a regal quality, but it's also a little bit sort of relaxed somehow.
09:02I don't know. There's something very comforting about looking at it.
09:06Well, these are remarkable tiaras that were made for Her Majesty.
09:12This was featuring aquamarines that came from Brazil. It's quite something.
09:19And this was from Burma in 1947.
09:24The rubies have this incredible colour, much more vivid than I had imagined, as I've actually never seen.
09:31I mean, this is the first time it's been exhibited.
09:33Really? Yes.
09:34So it's just wonderful to see it. It's quite a spectacular jewel.
09:38Well, a crown is a symbol of a coronation that's only worn by the monarch.
09:43In a way, I suppose, because we know that these were made with these wonderful gifts of stones commissioned by
09:50the Queen, that they have that sort of regal status.
09:54But of course, in reality, anybody can wear a tiara.
09:58The fact that they incorporate these state gifts gives them, I suppose, that kind of dignity and association with monarchy.
10:09But as you say, the crown can only be worn by the sovereign.
10:16This archive is shown, I think, particularly being able to access all the documentation, correspondence, fashion sketches.
10:24Seeing the hand of the Queen literally presents a much more rounded story about her relationship with fashion.
10:31The great takeaway, I suppose, is that she was deeply, deeply involved in the production of her clothing.
10:37Yeah, absolutely. Just walking through these rooms, you have a real sense of who she was and the messages and
10:44images that she wanted to convey through the way she dressed.
10:48That sense of communication, I think, with audiences was so important for her.
10:53Even without needing to speak. The clothes did so much of the talking, really.
10:59Yes, they did.
11:00I'm thrilled that we've taken this trip through history together with these amazing clothes.
11:09And I'll see you soon.
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