The past 70 years have seen a 25-year-old princess transform into a nonagenarian monarch who was respected and loved the world over.
A woman whose views were never heard, Queen Elizabeth II deployed fashion as a means to communicate and signal her position to the crowds who gathered to see her in public and the millions who watched her television broadcasts: “I must be seen to be believed,” she said. The Queen’s evolving attitude to dress reflected a visual landscape that started as genteel reportage in black and white and over the years developed into a 24/7 live-streamed news cycle, flashed around the world in seconds and driven by social media. Through it all, Elizabeth II’s style was an extension of all she represented as Queen; it was stoical and cautious yet dazzling and majestic.
The Queen: 70 Years of Majestic Style
celebrates the fashion evolution of Elizabeth II and takes a look at an unrivalled archive of unique fashion moments that bear testament to the care and consideration the Queen took in looking the part for a role like no other.