The Queen's Speech: Her Majesty breaks her own tradition for just the third time in history
Queen Elizabeth II was dressed in full ceremonial robes as she delivered her speech at the State Opening of Parliament on Monday.
However, she left out one thing from her outfit, breaking her own tradition for the third time in history.
The Queen opted against wearing the jewel-encrusted Imperial State Crown, choosing instead to wear the George IV State Diadem.
The crown, which was made for the coronation of the Queen’s father King George VI in 1937, featured 2,868 diamonds as well as a collection of sapphires, emeralds, pearls and rubies. It weighs a little over one kilogram.
In a BBC documentary released last year, the Queen described the crown as “unwieldy”.
“You can’t look down to read the speech, you have to take the speech up, because if you did your neck would break – it would fall off,” she said.
“So there are some disadvantages to crowns, but otherwise they’re quite important things.”
Meanwhile, the diadem is comparably lighter. Commissioned for George IV’s coronation in 1821, it was set with more than 1,300 diamonds and lined with gold.
According to BBC, this is the third time the monarch opted not to wear the crown for her speech since 1852. In 1974, she did not don the crown and ceremonial accessories for the Queen’s Speech following then-prime minister Ted Heath’s decision to call a snap election.
In 2017, the Queen wore a blue jacket and hat in place of the crown, in what observers saw as a nod to the European Union (EU) in the wake of the Brexit vote.
During her speech on Monday, the Queen read out the laws the Boris Johnson government wants Parliament to approve, including policies on crime, plastic pollution and healthcare as well as seven Brexit-related bills.
The speech comes as Johnson’s government continues the effort to secure an agreement that will allow the country to leave the EU by October 31.