Admittedly, the blog about Catherine’s dress from Safiyaa was deliberately written in a provocative manner. Now that the conversation about hidden signals and misinterpreted choices has started, we dive into the wonderful world of royal fashion signals.
They sometimes say that a picture says more than a thousand words. This certainly also applies to an outfit at court. There is plenty of communication through fabrics, colors, patterns and labels. They can be captured by words, but by clothing it is a lot more difficult. I will show with four examples that the Oranges also make grateful use of this knowledge.
Example 1: the white carnation
In 1976 it was not exactly pleasant at Soestdijk Palace. As Queen Juliana struggled with all kinds of complicated situations, it became clear that her husband had accepted a whopping $1.1 million in bribes. As a result of the affair, Prince Bernhard had to resign from his positions in the armed forces and in business. He was also strongly advised not to wear his military uniform anymore. This situation was very painful for Princess Beatrix. Her father was her hero and now he was being attacked in front of the nation. Because of the ministerial responsibility, she could not stand up for her father in words. What she did do was wear a large white carnation on Queen’s Day 1976. The flower was – and is – so closely linked to Prince Bernhard that it was clear to everyone which side she was on.
Example 2: the engagement dress
It’s no secret that Princess Beatrix and Princess Mabel like each other. When the latter came under fire in 2005 because of her past dealings with criminal Klaas Bruinsma, Beatrix was unfortunately unable to stand up for her. Because: ministerial responsibility. What she could do was show her colors by lending her engagement dress. And so she did.
Example 3: a dyed dress
Máxima usually wears something new on Budget Day, but for 2020 she rightly made an exception. The country was on fire due to the coronavirus and parading around in a new couture dress would send out very wrong signals. A previously worn dress by Claes Iversen was dipped in a dye bath, resulting in a dress that was both old and new. To prevent the signal from being picked up incorrectly or not at all, the Government Information Service sent out a press release about the entertainment process on its own initiative.
Example 4: spreading costs
A couture dress by Iris van Herpen comes with a hefty price tag. The amounts start at 35,000 euros and can go up to numbers around 100,000 euros. Even for a queen, these are unprecedentedly high amounts. It is no coincidence that only dresses from the distant past appeared for the rest of the month. After dozens of messages about her thriftiness/sustainability, a masterpiece could be disposed of.
Revenge
Long story short: a royal dress is more than just a piece of fabric sewn together. It can, if necessary, be an excellent means of communication. In the United Kingdom they are much more conscious about this than in the Netherlands. Think of it as the legacy of Princess Diana, who spoke the language of fashion fluently. The ultimate example of this is the revenge dress. I will briefly explain this story for the ladies and gentlemen who missed it.
On June 24, 1994, an interview with Prince Charles was broadcast in which he confessed his infidelity. Mortified as she was, Princess Diana decided that same evening to attend a charity dinner to which she had previously declined the invitation. The last thing she wanted was for the prince’s face to dominate the front pages. A black cocktail dress had been hanging in her closet for three years, which she actually thought was too daring to wear in public. But now, on the evening where she wanted to prove to Charles and the world that she was much more than a consolation prize, she put it on anyway. With her head held high, she walked past a hedge of photographers. It resulted in iconic photos, which Charles promptly erased from the front page. That is why the dress is called the revenge dress.
When Catherine and Meghan entered the British court, they were both advised to double up on fashion with their late mother-in-law from time to time. The idea was that Diana’s image would have a positive effect on theirs.
Because the British royals use the power of fashion so often, their outfits are now subject to intense analysis. This week we saw two examples of this again.
Example 1: flag dressing
During the climate summit in Dubai, Prince Charles wore a tie with Greek flags. Striking, because the United Kingdom and Greece are in dispute over the world-famous Parthenon sculptures, which once stood in Athens, but were transferred to London in the nineteenth century. The row became so heated that the British Prime Minister canceled a meeting with his Greek counterpart. And then suddenly, in the middle of all the fuss, King Charles wore a tie with Greek flags… Some saw it as a show of support for Greece, Prince Philip’s motherland. The other saw it as a diversionary maneuver to draw attention away from the book Final Battle. And of course it could also be a coincidence. But let’s be honest: then it’s a stupid coincidence.
I understand it’s simply a coincidence His Majesty is wearing a tie with the Greek flag on, despite speculation he was sending a subtle message following a diplomatic row between the UK and the Greek PM. pic.twitter.com/kpitsfQtQG
— Cameron Walker (@CameronDLWalker) December 1, 2023
Example 2: a dress from Safiyaa
And then there is the riot that I referred to in the introduction. On Thursday evening, during the Royal Variety Performance, all eyes were on Princess Catherine. In Omid Scobie’s new book, she is identified as one of the ‘racists’ within the royal family. The author has good connections with Harry and Meghan, so we can guess from which direction the accusation actually comes. Catherine does not want to comment on the situation with words. She ignores every question she receives from the press box. That is precisely why all eyes are now on the clothing/jewelry that the princess is wearing. Because: what signal does she want to send? What does she think about the whole situation?
Naturally, the princess was aware of all the attention paid to her clothing. The fact that she wore a dress from a label associated with Meghan during the variety show is therefore at least striking. Is it a conscious choice? A stab under water? A helping hand? Don’t know. Fashion does not have to be a means of communication, but I hope that after this blog you will understand why people talk so much about possible signals.
