The Queen's pearl jewelry mishap she suffered on her wedding day

The Queen's pearl jewelry mishap that happened the morning of her big day has been revealed

The Queen's pearl jewelry mishap
(Image credit: Getty Images)

The late Queen Elizabeth II suffered a mishap when it came to her pearl necklace on her and Prince Philip's wedding day.

  • November 20th 2022 will mark 75 years since Queen Elizabeth II married the Duke of Edinburgh, Prince Philip, in 1947. 
  • The late royal couple tied the knot at Westminster Abbey and Her Majesty, who was Princess Elizabeth at the time, almost wasn't able to wear her stunning pearl necklace for the big day.
  • In other royal news, the reason the Queen insisted on always holding her own umbrella on rainy days has been revealed. 

In light of what would've been Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip's 75th wedding anniversary being just around the corner, a sweet story about the beautiful pearl necklace the late monarch wore for her big day has been revealed. 

The Queen, who reigned for over 70 years before passing away at Balmoral Castle aged 96 in September, was gifted two pearl necklaces by her parents as a wedding gift. 

The Queen Mother and King George VI gave Queen Elizabeth, fondly know as Lilibet by her loved ones, the Queen Anne and Queen Caroline pearl necklaces, which experts at jewelry retailer Seven Stone estimate to be worth around $30,000.

The Queen's pearl jewelry mishap

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Seven Stone reports that the two necklaces are worn together to create a double-strand look but are clasped separately as individual pieces. The Queen Anne necklace is strung with an impressive 46 pearls, while the Queen Caroline necklace is bigger, with an incredible 50 pearls. 

The Queen planned to wear the pearls for her and Prince Philip's nuptials but before leaving for the ceremony, realised that she had left them behind at St. James’s Palace where her wedding gifts were on display. 

The Queen's pearl jewelry mishap

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Luckily, the Queen’s private secretary, Jock Colville, dashed to collect the pearls so that she could wear them to marry Philip.

The Queen famously loved pearls and had many pearl pieces in her astounding jewelry collection, with the likes of the Princess of Wales, Kate Middleton, having paid tribute to the monarch by wearing pears on various occasions since her death. 

Caitlin Elliott
News Editor

Caitlin is News Editor for woman&home, covering all things royal, celeb, fashion, beauty and lifestyle. Caitlin started on local papers and titles such as Cosmopolitan, Now, Reveal and Take a Break while studying for her Multimedia Journalism degree. She also worked in Fashion PR as a Press Assistant for Arcadia's Topshop before becoming a part of the Now team. Caitlin went on to add the likes of Woman, GoodtoKnow, WhatToWatch and woman&home to her writing repertoire before moving on to her current role.