Queen Camilla visits the National Stud in Newmarket on July 22, 2025 (Chris Radburn/PA Images/Alamy)
On Tuesday, King Charles and Queen Camilla headed to Suffolk for a slate of engagements, and Camilla wore a meaningful brooch (and a romantic necklace!) for the occasion.
King Charles III and Queen Camilla visit the National Stud in Newmarket on July 22, 2025 (Chris Radburn/PA Images/Alamy)
Tuesday’s royal visit to Suffolk included several events in Newmarket, including a visit to the National Stud, a walkabout on the High Street, and a stop at the Jockey Club Rooms. Above, during their visit to the National Stud, they got to visit with Stradivarius, the legendary Irish Thoroughbred racehorse.
King Charles III and Queen Camilla visit the National Stud in Newmarket on July 22, 2025 (Chris Radburn/PA Images/Alamy)
Queen Camilla wore a black and white printed summer dress for the daytime outing, paired with neutral accessories and several interesting pieces of jewelry.
Queen Camilla visits the National Stud in Newmarket on July 22, 2025 (Chris Radburn/PA Images/Alamy)
Along with some of her staple pieces, including her diamond floral and pearl drop earrings and her Van Cleef & Arpels blue agate Alhambra bracelet, Camilla wore a pair of necklaces and a familiar brooch. The necklaces featured a pair of pendants, one engraved with the initials of her grandchildren, and the other made of blue enamel and decorated with pavé-set diamonds in an interlocking heart design.
On the collar of her dress, nearly hidden amid the busy pattern, she also pinned a special equestrian-themed jewel: the horseshoe-shaped Minoru Brooch, a token commemorating the most successful racehorse owned by King Edward VII.
Queen Camilla attends November Racing Weekend at Ascot Racecourse on November 19, 2022 (Maureen McLean/Alamy)
Queen Camilla has been wearing the brooch for many years, dating back to her days as Duchess of Cornwall. The brooch features diamond letters spelling out MINORU, interspersed with sapphires and rubies representing the royal racing colors. Camilla most often wears the jewel at events related to horses or racing.
Queen Camilla visits the National Stud in Newmarket on July 22, 2025 (Chris Radburn/PA Images/Alamy)
Also worth note is the blue enamel and diamond pendant, which appears to be a slightly newer addition to Camilla’s jewelry box. The design is typical of motifs popular during the Georgian and Victorian periods, and it seems likely that Camilla’s pendant is an antique, perhaps dating to the nineteenth century.
King Charles III and Queen Camilla, with the Prince and Princess of Wales, attend a Christmas Day church service at St Mary Magdalene Church near the Sandringham estate on December 25, 2022 (Joe Giddens/PA Images/Alamy)
To the best of my knowledge, our first sighting of the pendant on Camilla came on Christmas Day at Sandringham in December 2022, just a few months after King Charles’s accession to the throne. Camilla wore the pendant peeking out from her coat that day.
The placement of the pendant made me wonder at the time whether it was a jewel or an embellished zipper pull. (It’s a jewel.) Interestingly, Camilla made a point of showcasing the pendant as the family left the church after the service. She had it tucked away in her coat during the walk from Sandringham to St. Mary Magdalene beforehand.
Queen Camilla visits the Garden Museum to open the annual British Flowers Week Exhibition in London on June 8, 2023 (Amanda Rose/Alamy)
We saw her wear the necklace a second time in June 2023, when she visited the Garden Museum in London to open the annual British Flowers Week Exhibition. Here, she stacked together three pendants: the interlocking hearts on one chain, and her family initial pendant with a favorite Kiki McDonough charm on a second chain.
I don’t believe we’ve been made aware of any provenance details for the necklace, but the timing of the first appearance—on Christmas Day, shortly after the accession—makes me wonder if it was a gift from Charles to mark either of those occasions. The antique pendant seems just his style, and the interlocking heart design would be a wonderful way to emphasize to your spouse how much you appreciate her love and support at a complicated time.
King Charles III visits the National Stud in Newmarket on July 22, 2025 (Chris Radburn/PA Images/Alamy)
Speaking of Charles, he also wore a pendant of his own for the visit to the National Stud: the same gold pin with an oval plaque pendant that we saw him wear throughout the Ascot races this year. I’m still not able to get a good look at the lettering etched on the plaque, but I think this might be a Jockey Club badge. Anyone who has more expertise on the subject is encouraged to chime in below in the comment section!