The Maple leaf brooch takes the form of a maple leaf, the emblem of Canada. It features baguette diamonds to create the stem and veins of the leaves.
says that The Queen Mother, then Queen Elizabeth, received the maple leaf brooch from George VI before the couple toured Canada in 1939, while Leslie Field’s implies it was a gift during the tour (‘Her Majesty was presented with a large diamond encrusted maple leaf brooch’). The brooch was made by Asprey.
She then leant it to her daughter, Elizabeth, in 1951 for the same reason. The Queen Mother would continue to wear the piece on many occasions…including when she received the insignia of the Order of Canada a few months after her 100th birthday.
Elizabeth II inherited the brooch from her mother in March 2002, upon her death. Elizabeth II lent it to the the-Duchess of Cornwall and Duchess of Cambridge on their first trips to Canada.
Elizabeth II followed in her mother’s footsteps by loaning it to her daughter-in-law, the then-Duchess of Cornwall, for her first official Canadian visit. Elizabeth II also lent the brooch to the then-Duchess of Cambridge for her first official visit to Canada in 2011.
Catherine has worn the Maple Leaf brooch during one of her visits to Canada.
Following Elizabeth II’s death in 2022, the brooch was part of the collection passed down in succession.
Whilst Camilla hasn’t worn the piece publicly as Queen, she opted to wear it for her official Canadian portrait. The photograph was taken in the White Drawing Room in Buckingham Palace by Millie Pilkington.
Official Canadian portrait of Queen Camilla, where Her Majesty is wearing the Maple Leaf brooch. (Buckingham Palace/Millie Pilkington)
