Tiaras and Trinkets on Tuesday (Chains of Office)

Peace has seemingly now finally returned to our blog after Lady Arcwhite's victorious welcome back into her native country a month ago. As our regular Tuesday resumes, we deviate from the "tiara" aspect of our Tuesdays and focus on the "trinkets". Men of Rank at events of a the highest formality will often wear large chains upon their shoulders. These are known as "chains of office". However in some contexts they are also worn by women, normally those who hold specific titles in their own right. These chains as such are attached symbolically to the wearer's highest title, like King of Syldavia or Duke of Roswind. Let us take a look at some of these and what titles they represent. 

His Royal Highness the Duke of Swann is seen in this photo wearing the Sash of the Order of the Diamond Star, several badges of Knighthood and the Chain of Office of the Duke of Swann.

This old archive photo shows the Chain of Office of the Duke of Swann as well as the Badge of the Family Order of Swann. The design of both are purposely similar. The Chain form part of the Crown Jewels and is worn by the Duke of Swann in his capacity as ruler of the Principality at any formal event where he represents the country.

The King of Syldavia is an elected monarch hailing from the ranks of the five Electorate Noble Families. As such he will wear the chain of office of his personal title during his lifetime as king. Here we see the current King wearing the Chain of Office of the Count Von Bismarck. 

The Princess of Wallachia is seen here in her Investiture Robes wearing the "Chain of the Grand Prince". She chose to wear it, not around her neck but rather pinned it very stylishly onto the two edges of her bodice. The undulation of the chain gives it a very unique but also confident feel. Strictly speaking there are no rules as to "how"the chain should be worn so the Princess' boldness may be commended.

The Queen of Hispania chose to wear the "Hispanian Chain of the King" around her waste for this State Portrait. Although it also may be considered being a departure from the more tradtional consideration of wearing it on the shoulders around the neck, this manner of wearing a chain of office has actually been practiced by ladies quite often through the centuries,

The Baron D'Rothchild shows us an almost perfect rendition of the wearing of his chain of office in this official portrait from 2014. The chain hangs broadly on his shoulders and its pendant is clearly visible, complimented by the yellow sash of the Order of the Polar Star.

The Crown Prince Imperial, as pretender to no less than three historic thrones and bearer of several other titles, has the "burden"of sometimes being obliged to wear as many as three chains of office in tandem. In this photo we see him wearing two. The silver one with the chandelier style pendant acknowledges his title as Grand master of the Order of the Diamond Star in Britania and Scotney. The Golden Chain is for his titles as King of Scotney, King of Britania and Emperor of the United Empire.

The Chain of the Order of the Diamond Star is considered the private property of the Crown Prince Imperial but kept as part of the Imperial Crown Jewels.

The Golden Chain of  the United Empire of Scot Britania is set with diamonds and forms part of the Imperial Crown Jewels . 

We hope you enjoyed this departure from the standard Tiaras and Trinkets Tuesdays. Keep a lookout for these chains in future posts.