Queen Camilla paid a touching tribute during a visit to Wales this week as she wore a beautiful brooch that represents both the history of Wales and her own personal relationship with the royal family. The King and Queen were greeted by Welsh First Minister Vaughan Gething and Llywydd (or Presiding Office) of the Senedd, Elin Jones, as they arrived in Cardiff this week to the sound of rapturous applause. The royal wore a soft pink Anna Valentine coat dress for the occasion, pairing the piece with a hat by Lock and Co – the oldest hat shop in the world.
For royal fans, though, all attention was on her sparkling brooch. The diamond leek piece is not only a symbolic tribute to the people of Wales, but a replica of a similar brooch known to be a favourite of the late Queen Elizabeth II whenever she was visiting Wales. The Welsh Guards Leek Brooch was presented to Her late Majesty by the country’s guardsmen in 1960 – a regimental gift paid for by the servicemen themselves, who also designed the pin.
In the decades following, she would wear the piece during her engagements with the regiment, as well as to showstopping events like Trooping the Colour in 2020. Queen Camilla wore the piece on her first trip to Wales after the passing of her late mother-in-law in 2022, a poignant tribute to Elizabeth II’s connection to the country. She paired the replica with the traditional black suits of mourning.
, too, owned a replica of the diamond brooch, which holds mythological symbolis.
