Hillsborough Castle launches a fashion exhibition celebrating royal couture: Royal Style In The Making

This Spring, Historic Royal Palaces – the charity that cares for Hillsborough Castle and Gardens – will present their acclaimed exhibition Royal Style in the Making, an intimate glimpse into the world of the royal couturier and the working relationship between fashion designer and royal client.

Originally shown at Kensington Palace in 2021, this abridged version of Royal Style in the Making is Historic Royal Palaces’ first royal fashion exhibition at Hillsborough Castle. It will reveal the creative process and craftsmanship behind clothing destined for the world stage while exploring how fashion shaped the style and image of the monarchy throughout the twentieth century.

Highlights include three spectacular garments created for the late Queen Elizabeth II, Princess Margaret and Queen Elizabeth, The Queen Mother:

• A salmon-pink silk chiffon dress with small gold rectangles and bat-wing sleeves, worn by Queen Elizabeth II to a film premiere in 1979 and created by her royal dressmaker, Hardy Amies.
• An eighteenth-century-style blue and gold ballgown designed by Oliver Messel and worn by Princess Margaret to a charity ball at London’s Mansion House in July 1964.
• An elegant floor-length calico toile accented with gold detailing, crafted by Elizabeth Handley-Seymour for the coronation of George VI and Queen Elizabeth (later the Queen Mother) on 12^th May 1937 at Westminster Abbey.

In addition to these showstopping gowns, visitors will have the rare opportunity to see original sketches, fabric swatches and embroidery samples from the Royal Ceremonial Dress Collection – a treasure trove of over 10,000 items of dress and design history cared for by Historic Royal Palaces. The exhibition also features a specially commissioned film that delves into the creative collaboration between each designer and their royal client.

This includes sketches by celebrated British designer David Sassoon for Diana, Princess of Wales, and Norman Hartnell’s meticulously kept drawings and personal correspondence with Queen Elizabeth II, documenting his close working relationship with the newlywed Princess, having designed her wedding dress in 1947.

Claudia Acott Williams, Curator at Historic Royal Palaces, says: “Royal Style in The Making” offers a rare insight into the creative partnerships that have defined British royal fashion. This exhibition not only celebrates the artistry and ingenuity of five extraordinary designers, but it also examines the unique and exacting requirements of dressing royalty that reveals the close personal relationships between designer and royal client. Visitors will gain an intimate perspective on the design process, from initial sketches to finished garment, that helped define the visual identity of the royal family over the past century.”