While Meghan Markle, Queen Camilla and Sophie the Duchess of Edinburgh may appear to have little in common despite their marriages to members of the British royal family, a key stylistic link has proven evident in recent years—all are fans of France's premiere fashion house.
The couture salon of Christian Dior on Paris' famous Avenue Montaigne is perhaps an unexpected venue for British royals to turn to, having an established tradition by Queen Victoria that it is an important display of patriotism to wear and promote British fashion.
The allure of Dior, however, has proven irresistible for the female members of the House of Windsor almost from its foundation by its namesake designer in the 1940s. The first collection was dubbed the "New Look" and changed the landscape of post-war fashion in Europe and around the world.
The first major British royal client that the house secured was Queen Elizabeth II's sister, Princess Margaret. Wallis Simpson, the Duchess of Windsor was also a regular customer.
It wasn't until Princess Diana that the next generation of royal women would take up the Dior banner, wearing a couture outfit from John Galliano's first collection as the brand's creative director in 1996 to the Met Gala in New York.
Diana also made famous the house's most iconic handbag, a small handled open-top design with metallic charms which was renamed the "Lady Dior" in her honor after her untimely death in 1997.
It was Meghan Markle who picked up her late mother-in-law's fashion mantle after her marriage to Prince Harry in 2018, quickly debuting a Christian Dior couture outfit at an official function two months after her royal wedding.
Meghan wore several Dior outfits during her time as a working royal, and in 2022, two years after splitting from the monarchy, the duchess dazzled attendees at the Platinum Jubilee commemoration for Queen Elizabeth II wearing a head-to-toe Dior creation.
Queen Camilla is also a proven Dior devotee. In 2013, when still Duchess of Cornwall she included a visit to the Dior couture workrooms in the program of her first official solo overseas tour. Since then she has debuted a number of outfits from the designer.
In 2023 and 2024, Camilla opted for Dior dresses and coats for appearances at the Royal Ascot horseraces as well as for a grand reception at the Palace of Versailles. And this year, she has also worn a taupe leather "Lady Dior" handbag to a number of events, including the Wimbledon Tennis Championships.
Now, the queen's sister-in-law, Sophie, the Duchess of Edinburgh, has formed a link with the house.
On August 6, the duchess visited the Dior salon during a trip to Paris to attend events connected with the Olympic Games.
In a post to X (formerly Twitter) from the British Embassy in Paris' official account, it was revealed that Sophie was given a tour of an exhibit of outfits designed by Dior which were worn at the Olympic Games' opening ceremony.
"HRH The Duchess of Edinburgh visited the Galerie @Dior this week to learn more about the history of the couture house and one of the Scottish suppliers for their Cruise 2025 show @Johnstons_Elgin," it said.
"Dior's parent company @LVMH employs almost 6,000 people in the UK."
Despite multiple British royals now showing that they can't get enough of Christian Dior, one key royal tastemaker so far appears to have eluded the house's prestigious client list—Princess Kate.
Kate doesn't appear to have publicly worn a Dior outfit or accessory in her 13 years as a member of the royal family.
This does not mean that the princess is averse to wearing French designers. In recent years, Kate has worn pieces from the houses of Chanel, Balmain, and Yves Saint Laurent. Whether Dior will one day be added to the list leaves royal fashion watchers in stylish anticipation.
James Crawford-Smith is Newsweek's royal reporter, based in London. You can find him on X (formerly Twitter) at @jrcrawfordsmith and read his stories on Newsweek's The Royals Facebook page.
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