Four years after her death, Queen Elizabeth II will be honored with a major fashion exhibition opening in spring 2026 at Buckingham Palace in London. Titled "Queen Elizabeth II: Her Life in Style," the exhibit marks 100 years since her birth on April 21, 1926, and is expected to be the largest display of the queen’s wardrobe to date.
The exhibition will feature roughly 200 garments, jewelry pieces and accessories spanning her seven-decade reign, with about half revealed to the public for the first time. Tickets go on sale in November.
Among the highlights are her wedding dress from her 1947 marriage to Prince Philip, designed by Norman Hartnell and made from satin purchased with ration coupons, her coronation gown from 1953, and outfits worn at royal engagements worldwide. Many were carefully chosen to convey subtle diplomatic messages through color, cut, or embroidery.
Unlike exhibitions focused on other royals, which are rare, this display emphasizes both the queen’s formal attire and her personal style. It includes sketches, fabric samples and personal letters showing her hands-on role in selecting her clothing. Everyday outfits worn at her private residences, including tartan skirts, tweed coats and silk scarves from brands such as Burberry, Barbour and Pringle of Scotland, will also be on view. Notably, the queen exclusively wore British designers, never opting for French fashion houses like Chanel or Christian Dior.
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Queen Elizabeth II at her coronation, alongside Prince Philip, 1953
(Photo: AP/ Leslie Priest)
“Queen Elizabeth’s unique style became recognizable worldwide, bolstered the British fashion industry, and inspired generations of designers,” said curator Caroline de Gito. “Now, with the queen’s fashion archive under Royal Collection Trust, we can tell the story of her life through carefully chosen outfits—from her active role as monarch to the extraordinary artistry behind every garment. In the year she would have turned 100, this exhibition celebrates her distinctive British style and enduring fashion legacy.”
Elizabeth II maintained a consistent personal style throughout her 70-year reign, favoring skirt suits, matching hats, and leather handbags—similar to former German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s consistent appearance in colorful suits with minor variations. Unlike Princess Diana, whose style was closely tied to the contemporary fashion industry, Elizabeth II remained a bastion of stylistic stability, only briefly engaging with London Fashion Week in 2018 when she presented a fashion award to rising designer Richard Quinn.
“Her awareness of fashion’s power was remarkable,” said British milliner Stephen Jones in Vogue. “She understood her appearance as a metaphor that could be used in many ways.” Her iconic hats, pastel dresses and coronation gown, which included symbols of all Commonwealth nations, conveyed political as well as stylistic significance.
Throughout her reign, Elizabeth II’s consistent use of bold, bright colors—tomato red, fuchsia, turquoise—ensured she stood out at large events, allowing her to be easily seen by subjects and dignitaries alike. Angela Kelly, the queen’s personal dresser for over a decade, explained that the choices were deliberate: “The queen wanted to be seen and remembered. She requested clothes that not only stood out in a crowd but also respected tradition. She believed that if someone waited hours to see her, they deserved to see her clearly.”
In many ways, Queen Elizabeth II wore more than just clothing; she wore her role. Every suit, hat and brooch was chosen to communicate sovereignty, tradition, and presence. The upcoming exhibition will offer insight not only into her colorful wardrobe but also into her belief in the power of visual representation to convey continuity, confidence, and stability. As she once said in a rare interview: “I cannot wear beige—no one would know who I am.”