The most representative symbol of British royalty is the State Imperial Crown , the crown that British monarchs have worn since Queen Victoria came to the throne in 1837 in the most solemn acts such as coronations and opening sessions of Parliament.
This crown boasts an impressive multitude of priceless jewels and gemstones, but among them stands out a huge red ruby, known as "The Ruby of the Black Prince" (see image). The crown and the jewel itself are very popular, but what is not so well known is that this ruby came to England from Spain, although there are different theories about its place of origin.
The story is as follows:in the second half of the fourteenth century, two dynastic wars converged in Europe:one for the French crown that confronted the English and the French, known as the War of the A hundred years; the other for the crown of Castile that faced the two sons of Alfonso XI, Pedro I (son of his wife María de Portugal), and Enrique de Trastámara (son of his lover Leonor de Guzmán).
In other blog articles (María de Padilla; Catalina de Lancaster) we have commented on the importance of the outcome of the Castilian war for the two opposing powers in the Hundred Years' War:Essentially, control of the powerful Castilian navy was vital for both European contenders and depended on who held the crown of Castile; thus, France supported Henry and England supported Peter.
Pedro, who had to flee precipitously from Seville in the midst of the conflict, taking what he could of the royal treasury, went to France where he found the support of the Prince of Wales, Edward «The Black Prince » (to whom we once dedicated an article on this blog Eduardo, «the Black Prince»). Together they returned to Castile where they defeated Enrique at the battle of Nájera in 1367. As a thank you for the support received from the English troops (and as a consequence of the lack of cash to pay for said support), Pedro presented the Prince of Wales with a huge ruby that was among the jewels of the treasure of Castile that Pedro had taken from Seville (although some version maintains that it was not Pedro who gave the ruby to Edward, but that the English appropriated the jewel, stealing it). /P>
More controversial raises the discussion about the origin of the ruby given by Pedro to the Black Prince. Some maintain that it was a jewel set in the sword of Fernando III "El Santo" who was in Seville and which Pedro appropriated in his withdrawal from this city to France. However, the most widespread version is that Pedro took it over by assassinating one of the contenders for the Arab kingdom of Granada Mohammed VI (known as "El Rey Bermejo"), a war in which Pedro supported the other contender, Mohammed V, whom the previous one had dethroned.
From then on, the speculations on the arrival of the jewel in Granada are innumerable (some maintain that it comes from the mines of King Solomon), but they escape the object of this article that only intended to tell how a jewel from Spain came to the most famous of the British royal crowns.
The ruby's journey from when Peter gave it to Edward in 1367 until it was set in the crown worn by Queen Victoria at her coronation in 1837 and the hands by which happened is a fascinating walk through the European history of the time but, as always, that's another story.
Image| State Imperial Crown