Palace clears air after confusion over Princess Royal Christmas trinket

Royal residences and palaces have been taken over by the festive wave as Christmas day nears. There are preparations being made for the much-awaited holiday as the royals gear up for their reunion.

King Charles and Queen Camilla had already released their official Christmas card. Soon after, Princess Anne’s delightful card was unveiled. The Royal Collection Trust had also been digging into the archive to share what past Christmas cards looked like.

They have also been sharing special royal treasures made to mark the holiday season and to honour beloved royal figures. On Tuesday, the office had shared a brooch which was designed by Prince Albert for his firstborn child Princess Vicky, whom he shared with wife Queen.

The post seemed to have caused some confusion about the Princess Royal’s original miniature and how it featured a life-like image of Princess Vicky that was used as a basis for the brooch. There were also queries about the which ‘Victoria’ was being referred in the post.

In response, they cleared some of the doubts that were raised.

“This is not a child the couple lost. It’s their first born, a daughter, Victoria, who grew up to become German Empress and Queen of Prussia through her marriage to Frederick III,” they mentioned.

They went on to add that the “lifelike image” used in the enamel brooch was “a copy of the miniature”.

“William Ross, the artist, began his first miniature of the baby on 15 October 1841, a month short of her first birthday,” it stated. “He chose to use the conceit of painting the infant as a cherub, a conventional one in mainstream portraiture as well as in miniature, although it was more often reserved for posthumous images.”