Catherine and Prince William welcomed the President and First Lady of Nigeria to Windsor, and the Princess of Wales proved that she understands sartorial symbolism like no other.
The Princess of Wales wore an elegant grey coat dress at the beginning of the Nigerian state visit on Wednesday morning. The ensemble, which bore white piping at the lapels and collar, was paired with a matching grey fascinator by Jane Taylor and a clutch bag. Prince William looked dapper in a suit and blue waistcoat, while the Nigerian First Lady, Oluremi Tinubu, was a vision in gold and green.
The Princess of Wales is known for her diplomatic dressing, and this ensemble was no different. The grey double-breasted blazer frock coat was from the collection of British-Nigerian designer Tolu Coker, whose London Fashion Week show King Charles attended in February.
Catherine also wore one of her most treasured pairs of earrings to welcome the Presidential couple. The Collingwood pearl earrings were a gift from Princess Diana, who was was given the earrings by Collingwood, a jewellery firm often favoured by the Spencers. The jewellers had lent gems to the young Diana while she was engaged to the then Prince Charles.
When Diana posed for a portrait session with Lord Snowdon, Princess Margaret‘s photographer husband, during her engagement, Collingwood lent her an elaborate diamond necklace and matching earrings. Reportedly, the jewellers wanted to gift the two pieces to Diana as a wedding gift, but the Palace cautioned that the set would be considered too extravagant. Instead, they gave her this pair of pearl and diamond earrings.Every gown and tiara the Princess of Wales has worn to a state banquetBy Isaac Bickerstaff
Diana debuted the earrings for dinner in honour of King Khalid of Saudi Arabia at Claridge’s in June 1981, several weeks before her wedding. They quickly became a mainstay in her collection and remained a favourite of Diana’s throughout her marriage; for grand state occasions, the Princess normally paired them with other pearl pieces, such as the QueenMary Lover’s Knot Tiara – a combination which has also proved popular with Kate Middleton.
Prince William and the Princess of Wales met with President Bola Tinubu and the First Lady at the Fairmont Hotel Windsor on Wednesday morning, where they had been staying since landing in Londonon Tuesday. It is becoming a tradition for the future king and queen to welcome guests on a state visit, as they did with President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump in September.
Their Royal Highnesses then accompanied the couple to Datchet Road in Windsor, where they received a Ceremonial Welcome before a formal welcome from the King and Queen at the Royal Dias. A Royal Salute was Windsor Home Park and the Tower of London, followed by a Salute from The Sovereign’s Escort and the playing of the Nigerian national anthem.
The King and Queen most certainly dressed the part to welcome the President and First Lady. Queen Camilla donned an all-pink ensemble, including a dress coat by one of her favourite labels, Fiona Clare, which she paired with a silk scarf and a Philip Treacy hat, adorned with appliqué flowers.
The Queen completed her look with pearl earrings and a pair of diamond brooches that witnessed history at the beginning of Queen Elizabeth II’s reign in 1952. The Greville Ivy Leaf Clips, now a regular in Camilla’s jewellery box (seen at the thanksgiving ceremony for the life of King Constantine of Greece and the memorial to her friend Sir Chips Keswick), are part of the extensive collection bestowed upon the royal family by Dame Margaret Greville – socialite and jewellery collector non-pareil. From her home in Polesden Lacey, Dame Margaret Greville became the leading society hostess of her day, forging a firm connection with the Queen Mother, to whom she gifted her immaculate collection of jewels after she died in 1942.
That vast set included the diamond and platinum Ivy Leaf clips that the Hon Mrs Greville commissioned from Cartier – one in 1930 and one in 1937. Queen Elizabeth II was gifted the ivy leaf clips from her parents to mark her 21st birthday, which the then Princess spent on a tour of South Africa. She would go on to wear the clips on many special occasions, including a state visit to Canada in 1951, as well as a trip to Washington DC and many outings to Royal Ascot.
But surely no outing for the Greville Ivy Leaf Clips can be as monumental as when Elizabeth wore them one evening at Sagana Lodge in Kenya – that fateful day in 1952 when the Princess ‘came down the tree a Queen’ following the death of her father, King George VI.
The President and the First Lady joined the King, the Queen, and the Prince and Princess of Wales in a carriage procession to the Castle, where they were met by a Guard of Honour formed by the 1st Battalion Grenadier Guards with the Royal Standard of the Regiment, alongside the Corps of Drums and the Band of the Regiment, playing from the Quadrangle. The Guard of Honour gave a Royal Salute, and the Band played the national anthems of Nigeria and Britain.
After the President and the King inspected the Guard of Honour, they joined the Queen and the First Lady to watch The King’s Troop Royal Horse Artillery March Past, the Sovereign’s Escort Rank Past, and the Guard of Honour March Past with the Prince and Princess of Wales.
Later in the afternoon, the King and Queen invited the President and the First Lady to the Green Drawing Room, where they viewed a special exhibition of items relating to Nigeria from the Royal Collection.
King Charles and President Tinubu met for an audience before visiting Vicars’ Hall, where they joined the First Lady to meet with British and international interfaith organisations. Then, there was an opportunity for the President and the First Lady to pay their respects at the tomb of Queen Elizabeth II in St George’s Chapel.
In the evening, the royal family will gather to host a state banquet at Windsor Castle, with Queen Camilla, Princess Anne, and the Princess of Wales all likely to don a tiara for the occasion. At the last state banquet, in honour of the German President, King Charles was joined by Queen Camilla, the Prince and Princess of Wales and Princess Anne. Both the King and the President are expected to deliver speeches at the beginning of dinner.
On Thursday, the President and First Lady will say their goodbyes to the royals before making their way to London. At Westminster Abbey, the President will lay a wreath at the Grave of the Unknown Warrior before a bilateral meeting with Sir Keir Starmer at 10 Downing Street.
Meanwhile, the First Lady is expected to visit Lambeth Palace, where she will preach at the Chapel and join a reception with representatives from the Church of England, as well as faith charities that have supported work in Nigeria, such as Christian Aid and Mothers’ Union.
Before returning to the airport, the couple will stop by the Tate Modern to tour the Nigerian Modernismexhibition and attend a reception with members of the Nigerian Diaspora in Britain.
Centre for Nigeria Progress 