With all the power, wealth, and attention, it’s no wonder that royal fashion has stood out across the ages and adheres to the strictest fashion protocols. Royals, being in service to their country and in the public eye, means they are under extreme scrutiny and their style impacts both their role and position.
With so many royals and cultures and fashions, it’d be impossible to consider them all in one article, so we’ll be focusing on the much-watched ladies of the English royal family and their predecessors.
Queen Mary I
The first in a long line of ladies, Queen Mary was quite reserved with her fashion. Always fully covered with giant sleeves, half-head caps, and floor-length dresses. She didn’t reveal much. However, she still had a royal style with intricate floral designs accented by gold and jewels that befit her status.
Queen Anne Boleyn
She was admired at the time for her sense of style and taste and she’s depicted today as fashionably provocative dresser. It helped that Henry VIII showered her with gifts of fine fabrics and jewelry, but she owned her fashion by adopting certain French fashions too. Plunging necklines and cinched waists to accent her figure, fur-trimmed velvet dresses, and all adorned with plenty of jewels.
Even during her arrest and trial she made sure to look fabulous with crimson and black velvet get-ups. She dressed to impress until the end.
Queen Elizabeth I
Arguably the most memorable fashion of any royal.
Queen Elizabeth was knowns for pearls upon pearls. Layers on layers of fabric. Stiff neck ruffs. Wired and gold-tasseled hair. Ornate wigs. Tight lace. Clownish garment dimensions.
Queen Elizabeth the First favored eccentric clothing even by today’s standards. She was chaste and stern, known as the Virgin Queen, yet ostentatiously dressed. Her red hair certainly accented her outfits, but it was far from the centerpiece.
Queen Victoria
She was the trendsetter for wearing white on your wedding day. Although others had done it before as a show of wealth, she did it to highlight the materials and craftsmanship used: a one-of-a-kind lace pattern, silk from the heart of London, and an 18-foot-long train adorned with orange blossoms. She also requested that no one else at the wedding wear white, besides her bridesmaids. Even though she was Queen, she chose to leave behind the crown and furs that usually accompanied a royal wedding and commit herself to a more wifely position.
Her next major fashion turning point occurred in 1861 when her husband died unexpectedly. For the next 40 years of mourning she wore black and upheld certain daily rituals like laying out her late-husband’s clothes. However, in spite of this, she was buried in the wedding lace she’s still known for to this day.
Queen Elizabeth II
The Queen of our time. While she harps on the younger royals to adhere to “royal protocol”, she stands out in her own way.
Her style has evolved over time. For most of her life she has adopted subdued and neutral outfits befitting the times, but she’s not opposed to looking regal for special occasions. Her wedding dress was a whopping 13 feet long and embroidered with pearls, silver thread, and crystals. For her coronation in 1953, she wore an intricate and powerful dress embroidered with the symbols of England, Scotland, Wales, and Ireland.
Never out to be a trendsetter, as popular fashion changed, so did she. More delicate and ladylike with sleeveless dresses, florals, and long skirts in the ‘50s and ‘60s. Adopting bold colors and trying out trends like print and shoulder pads in the ‘70s and ‘80s.
Then, in the ‘90s she adopted the look she’s continued to wear. Bright and colorful suits of every shade in the rainbow with large, matching hats so her subjects can see her from afar.
Her handbags have their own importance too. Not only does she favor $2,000 Launer handbags, but her positioning of it gives off secret commands to her servants. Putting her bag on the table means she’s ready to leave. Switching from one hand to the other means she’s done talking to you.
Princess Diana
In a long lineage of chastity and conservative dress, Princess Diana was the first to openly buck that trend.
The true harbinger of modern royal fashion. She proved that royals could be stylish, hip, modern, provocative, independent, and sexy. It’s no surprise that she was such a role model to women everywhere.
She had too many styles to count (Google “Princess Diana fashion”), because she could do it all. From a puffy 25-foot wedding dress to a revealing little black dress, from tomboy get-ups to proto-athleisure. She took the royal protocols and made them her own, which had a lasting influence on mainstream fashion around the world.
Kate Middleton
The first international royal of the social media era means quick fashion feedback. Her exposure and fashion have led to ‘The Duchess Effect’ which means whatever she wears sells out fast.
Besides companies like Zara and Issa feeling the bump, fashion designer Alexander McQueen’s profits jumped 30% after creating Kate’s lace wedding dress.
Despite being an instant fashion icon, her style has been historically conservative. Simple, solid colored coats and wrap dresses. Almost always a statement hat.
Her mostly reserved wardrobe means that when she experiments with more exotic patterns and designs, she really stands out.
Meghan Markle
A rebel in the eyes of the monarchy. If there’s one consistent line in her royal fashion history it’s that she breaks royal protocol. While Kate Middleton falls much more in the realm of traditional royalty, Meghan Markle shows little sign of toeing the line.
Before her marriage into the royal family she had bold fashion taste. Edgy metallic one-pieces. Faux fur jackets. Clashing patterns. Bold cuts. Suit jacket with shorts. Business casual. Everything from the girl-next-door to an elegant movie star.
While royal protocol has refined her wardrobe quite a bit, she’s still exercising her fashion-forward style. A sleek Givenchy wedding dress. Unique necklines whenever she can. Denim dresses and chic pantsuits. Always a stylish accent even in more conservative outfits.
Although she’s been reined in quite a bit, it’ll be interesting to see where her fashion goes from here.
