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Princess Margaret. Horse brooch Posted by Beth on June 7, 2021, 6:28 pm Has any one ever seen information on Princess Margaret's horse brooch? Horses are not something I associate with Princess Margaret. To my eye it looks as if this is a rocking horse. What do others think? 1954 Detail 1956

Re: Princess Margaret. Horse brooch Posted by Bryce on June 8, 2021, 7:09 am, in reply to "Princess Margaret. Horse brooch" I am not so sure it is a rocking horse.... I think that there might be a banner - perhaps with some motto or other wording underneath (and the straight bar is just for structure). If we could read it - it might lead to the provenance.

Re: Princess Margaret. Horse brooch Posted by Beth on June 8, 2021, 8:39 am, in reply to "Re: Princess Margaret. Horse brooch" Thanks Bryce. Perhaps, as you indicated, it might be a badge of some description. Another jewel to hunt down!

Re: Princess Margaret. Horse brooch Posted by Beth on June 8, 2021, 9:04 am, in reply to "Re: Princess Margaret. Horse brooch" Could the "horse brooch" be a match for the badge of the West Yorkshire Regiment (Prince of Wales Own)?? But the Wikipedia entry on Princess Margaret does not list it as one of "her" regiments. I'll try to check on that later today.

Re: Princess Margaret. Horse brooch. Badge of The 3rd The King's Own Hussars Posted by Beth on June 9, 2021, 10:23 am, in reply to "Re: Princess Margaret. Horse brooch" Thanks for the tip which set me on the right path, Bryce! I should have investigated what Princess Margaret was doing in Germany in mid-July 1954. She undertook a two day visit to various military groups in Germany. One of these groups was The 3rd The King's Own Hussars. Princess Margaret was the Colonel in Chief of the regiment, having been appointed in July 1953. Below we can see Princess Margaret inspecting the Regiment in Germany, 1954. The cap badge can be seen on some of the officers in the group. The cap badge In other photos from this day the badge is not easily discernible, perhaps due to the pattern of the dress, photographic limits of the era and the inclement weather. In many photos from the day, Princess Margaret is wearing a short fur jacket and so the bodice of the dress is not visible. The photo which I posted initially. I haven't yet found when the regiment presented Princess Margaret with the badge. Perhaps it was at a cocktail party she attended at the regiment's headquarters on 26 November 1953.

Re: Princess Margaret. Horse brooch. Purpose of the portrait Posted by Beth on June 9, 2021, 10:45 am, in reply to "Re: Princess Margaret. Horse brooch. Badge of The 3rd The King's Own Hussars" The portrait below was commissioned for the Royal Third Fusiliers, Princess Margaret being their Colonel-in-Chief. In 1956 the painting was displayed at the regiment's headquarters in Germany while it was stationed there. I haven't yet narrowed down precisely what the regiment badge looked like at the time.

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