All the watches of the Royal Family
Today we are talking about one of the most famous families around the world: The British Royal Family.
This family is composed by the current King or Queen of United Kindgom and by those close to the sovereign. This family does not only represent the head of state of the United Kingdom but it is a true icon worldwide.
Representing a whole country the Royal Family members have to maintain an elegant and sober style while carrying out their duties such as participation in national festivities, or undertake visits from local or foreign politician in order to keep strong diplomatic and economic relations.
All the watches we will see in this article will be just that: elegant and sober. Obviously what's sober for them could not be for us normal people but for sure they are still far from reaching rapper's level (Coff Coff Drake).
Queen Elizabeth II
Let's start with Queen Elizabeth II which reign lasted an incredible time of 70 years. Every person on planet earth has probably heard at least one time of Queen Elizabeth II.
In this old picture the Queen is wearing a Patek Philippe Ellipse Lady reference 4138/1G.
This wristwatch is crafted in 18 karat white gold. The integrated bracelet is also made in the same precious material.
The blue soleil dial is rounded with a set of baguet diamonds, amounting to 3,40 karats.
This very fine and elegant piece really fits the Queen style, as we said earlier a sober and elegant look is required since the Queen represents the whole country.
The market value for this watch sits around 20.000 USD
Queen Elizabeth II: Favourite Watch For Holidays
Queen Elizabeth II used to spend her holidays at the Balmoral Castle, known as the Scottish home of the Royal Family.
In this picture, the sovereign was wearing an Omega De Ville with a quartz movement.
This Swiss-Made timepiece is made in 18 karat yellow gold and has a champagne dial.
Due to the shape it may seem bigger than in reality, but the already very small diameter makes it very portable even for a lady.
Queen Elizabeth II: Patek Philippe Full Gold
Coming back to the Queen's Patek Philippe, in this picture Queen Elizabeth II was spotted wearing a Patek Philippe "Ladies Calatrava".
This watch is made in 18 karat yellow gold. The particularity of this wristwatch is the bracelet called "Beads of Rice": this bracelet is in fact composed by small grains of rice made out of gold. The result that we have from this composition is pleasant and elegant.
The small size of the case (20mm) makes this watch only suitable for ladies.
The white dial completes the classic look of the watch.
Queen Elizabeth II: Most Expensive Watch Ever?
As a final piece for Her Majesty The Queen we have picked probably the most luxurious and expensive watch in her collection: the Patek Philippe Ellipse reference 4975/1G.
This watch is encrusted with diamonds on the bezel and in the hour markers. The timepiece also features a pearl bracelet.
We are talking about a unique piece made exclusively by Patek Philippe for Queen Elizabeth II, so there is no way you can find the same model somewhere else.
In this picture the Queen is wearing this exquisite timepiece in occasion of her Jubilee in 2012 marking the 60th anniversary of her ascension to the throne.
We cannot tell the market price, but we can guess that if the watch will ever be auctioned, it will easily go over 50 million USD in value.
King Charles III: Lover of an Unusual Brand
Now it's the turn of Elizabeth II son and current King, King Charles III.
After Queen Elizabeth II death in September 2022, King Charles III became the oldest monarch to assume the British throne at 73 years old.
In this picture the actual King of United Kingdom is wearing a Parmigiani Fleurier Toric Chronograph reference PF00678.
Parmigiani Fleurier is quite a young brand, starting his production in 1996. At the beginning they weren't even making watches, but either building mechanical artifacts such as music boxes etc...
To craft their first watches Parmigiani seeked help from Zenith, which provided movements to mount on the Parmigiani's chronographs.
The list price for this timepiece sits around 15.000 USD.
Lady Diana: Class
Now it's time for Diana Frances Spencer or as we remember her: Princess Diana.
Probably the most popular woman of her time, being the real fashion icon of the royal family.
In this picture Lady D was spotted wearing a Cartier Tank in yellow gold, probably the watch that best represent her and which is more remembered for.
Inspired by the First World War's Tanks the Cartier Tank was first introduced in 1917 and has quickly become one of the most iconic timepieces.
The rectangular shape representing a tank viewed from the top is what makes the watch one of the most recognizable.
This iteration of the Cartier Tank has a white dial and blue colored hands.
Lady Diana: Wearing Two Watches?
Lady Diana was often spotted wearing two watches, it is thought that she was wearing multiple watches because while carrying out her duties around the world she wanted to know what time was at her husband or future husband place.
Why wearing a GMT timepiece when you can wear two watches?
Unfortunately her marriage with the former Prince Charles did not end well.
In this picture of Diana, the Princess is wearing is a Patek Philippe "Prince Charles" Calatrava in 18 karat Rose gold.
The price of this timepiece with a white dial sits around 20.000 USD.
Lady Diana: A Watch For An Occasion
As final piece for Princess Diana we have again a classic Yellow Gold Cartier Tank Française.
This timepiece was worn in occasion of Prince Williams's confirmation, in this picture of 1997 Lady D was waiting for her son.
Unlike previous spots here Diana is wearing the watch with a full Yellow gold bracelet.
Prince William: Beyond the object
Now it's time for Princess Diana and King Charles’ children: the first one is Prince William which occurs to be the future King of United Kingdom.
The watch he is wearing in the picture is the only one we ever see him wear, it's the Omega Seamaster Diver 300M reference 212.30.41.20.03.001.
The reason behind this is really simple: this watch was gifted to him in his late teens by her mother Lady Diana before passing away in a car accident.
This is a pretty special reason to wear a single watch for the rest of your life.
This reference in particular serves well as a job of a 1 watch collection since it has 300 meters of water resistance, making it suitable to do any activity you like.
The appearance of the watch makes it sporty and elegant at the same time, suitable to be worn with a suit or casual clothes.
This spot occurred during Prince William and Kate Middleton engagement.
The price of this timepiece sits around 2.500 USD making it very affordable and accessible.
Prince Harry: The Royal Soldier
The second son born from the marriage of King Charles and Princess Diana is Harry.
Harry served in the British Army for ten years undertaking two tours of Afghanistan and reaching the rank of Captain.
Here Harry was spotted wearing a Rolex Explorer II reference 216570.
It's the first Rolex that we see in this article, and it's almost at the end of it, not a very common thing.
The Rolex Explorer II with a white dial is also called by enthusiast "polar" because of his white dial. This watch features a GMT function indicated by the orange arrow shaped hand and a date function.
The particularity of the line Explorer of Rolex is that instead of the famous crown symbol of the brand at the 12 hour mark the explorer presents a triangle shaped indice, to get a better readability in case of low light conditions.
The price of this timepiece sits around 12.000 USD.
Kate Middleton: The Future Queen
As last spot in this article we will talk about one of the latest acquired members of the Royal Family: Kate Middleton.
As the wife of the future King she plays a very significant role in the family.
For her watch she probably took inspiration from his husband's mother: Diana.
She wears a Cartier watch, in particular the Cartier Ballon Bleu. The French brand seems to be appreciated by Princesses of Wales.
This model of Cartier loses the particular shape of the Cartier Tank but retains many details such as the blue hands, the Roman numerals and the particular crown.
In this spot other than the watch we can see Kate Middleton also wearing the ring that belonged to Princess Diana which William offered to Kate when they engaged.
The price of this watch sits around 5.000 USD.
