00:00We are here at the Royal Ceremonial Dress Collection with curator Matthew Storey.
00:05Now, Matthew, just tell me a little bit about what you do here.
00:08I look after this amazing collection of 10,000 items of clothing worn at the Royal Court
00:15or by members of the Royal Family.
00:18What is your favourite piece, if any, out of the collection?
00:22That is very difficult. I love anything by Norman Hartnell. I think he was a genius.
00:27He created some wonderful Royal Gowns and actually this piece is one of my favourites as well.
00:34Well, it's a prototype. The technical term is toile for the Queen Mother's Coronation Dress, dating from 1937.
00:42It was made by her favourite designer at the time, tried and trusted Madame Hanley Seymour.
00:49Madame Hanley Seymour had also made a wedding dress.
00:52This is how the designer worked out the cut and the fit and the design of the dress
00:58before she dared cut into the expensive satin that she was going to use.
01:02All this is gold paint.
01:04Well, of course, on the finished dress it would have been gold embroidery,
01:07but you can see in a few places they put extra patches on to change the design.
01:12And they probably also worked with the Queen Mother to get the fit right so it would be comfortable to
01:17her.
01:18So you can see there's tacking stitches here and even a rusty pin from 1937.
01:24So I imagine that the Queen Mother would have been there in the studio or perhaps at Buckingham Palace,
01:31because designers often come to royalty at the palace, giving her opinion, working out what would fit,
01:38what would work so she would be comfortable on the day.
01:42Wow. And do you think we may see a reprise of the similar style in the upcoming coronation,
01:48maybe by the Queen Consort or any of the senior royals?
01:52With coronations, there's always a looking back to precedent from the past,
01:56as well as doing something that works for the present day.
01:59And so something you really see on historic coronation gowns is this use of floral emblems.
02:07So the national floral emblem, you've got the rose, the thistle, the shamrock and the leek.
02:14And then you've also got other national emblems on this dress as well, for instance, for New Zealand and Canada.
02:21And there's a lovely kind of gold and white theme that we can see across those coronation gowns,
02:26other than really with Queen Elizabeth, there was a hint of colour, which I think reflects her really,
02:32because we always saw her wearing such lovely bright colours.
02:35And we do actually know from Norman Hartnell's own diary that colour was her idea.
02:40So he initially presented designs in gold and silver, but it was her suggestion to have colour on the floral
02:46emblems.
02:47Wow. So let's move on to this spectacular piece here. Now, what are we looking at here?
02:54We are looking at the oldest piece I've got out for you today. This dates from 1821.
02:59Wow. And it was worn at the coronation of King George IV, which remains the most expensive and extravagant coronation
03:08ever.
03:09Wow. And who would have worn this?
03:11So this was worn by a man called Dupre Alexander, and he was the second Earl of Caledon.
03:17So he was one of the peers attending the coronation. This is 1821. They're dressed in the styles of the
03:23late 16th or early 17th centuries.
03:26So this doublet and hose, which really harks back to Britain's heritage.
03:31It was the most expensive coronation ever, but the peers actually had to pay for their garments themselves.
03:36Wow. And why was that?
03:39Probably because they'd already spent so much money elsewhere, but they all had to be to this design so that
03:45the whole spectacle would work together.
03:48And actually, it was really appreciated by the public who appreciated this lift to the spirits,
03:55the national mood by this incredible display of very ancient theme in pageantry.
04:03There are a few little stains on this wonderful garment. Now, can you tell me what that might have been?
04:09Well, we're doing some science on them at the moment, so we're not sure, but we do have a working
04:13theory.
04:14And this is one reason I love working with historic dress, because it has all these traces of the people
04:19who wore it.
04:20So yeah, we've got a stain here and on the sleeve as well. And our top theory is this came
04:25from the coronation banquet.
04:27Wow. That happened afterwards in Westminster Hall. And we know it was a messy and quite riotous occasion.
04:35There's stories of people having to dodge dripping hot wax coming from the chandeliers above them.
04:41And when the king left, everyone descended and tried to grab as many souvenirs as they could.
04:47And it's worth saying they never hosted another banquet in Westminster Hall after that one. I think it just got
04:53too messy.
04:53Well, we've looked at something worn by a queen, something worn by a noble.
04:57I thought, let's have something worn by an everyday person, someone like you and me.
05:02So this dates to 1953. And it was worn by a little girl to celebrate the coronation of Queen Elizabeth
05:09II.
05:10So beautiful. And there's so much lovely detail. What can we see along the bottom?
05:14You can see a coronation procession. You've got Buckingham Palace, you've got a carriage,
05:20and you've even got the queen on her throne there. So I think the little girl who originally wore this
05:26must have felt great on the day. And we know she loved the dress as well, because after the day,
05:31she dressed a very large doll in it for a few years before they thought that maybe they should treasure
05:36it
05:36as a memento. I think it shows how an event like a coronation can really create a sense of national
05:44unity. I think at the time in 1953, that was very important. You've just come through a period of the
05:52Second World War of austerity and of rationing. And so the coronation was a chance for people to look
05:59to the future and to come together and to take part in what was a real moment of national renewal
06:06after a period of very great trauma. A way for everybody to come together and have a little piece of
06:13that day,
06:13a little memento they can carry with them on that occasion. So this dress from 1953 we've never displayed
06:20before, so I thought I'd get it out especially for you today. This one we need to keep safe in
06:25our stores.
06:26It's very delicate, but this one people will be able to see from the 26th of May in the Jewel
06:33House
06:33at the Tower of London.
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