In ordinary circumstances, this weekend would see us admiring hats worn by members of the British royal family at Epsom races, held the first weekend in June at the Epsom Downs Racecourse in Surrey since 1870. Queen Elizabeth has attended nearly every year of her adult life and this week, we’re going to look at all the hats she has worn to this event. Immense thanks to Jimbo for his assistance researching these hats.
Here are the hats Queen Elizabeth wore to the Epsom races from 1947 to 1965:
1947: June 3 and June 5, 1948
1949 and 1950
May 30 and June 1, 1951
1953; June 2 and 4, 1954
1955 and 1956
June 5 and 7, 1957
June 4, 5 and 6, 1958
June 3 and 5, 1959
June 1, 2 and 3, 1960
May 31 and June 2, 1961
1962 and 1963
June 3 and 6, 1964
Retrospective give us a fascinating glimpse of evolving millinery style- I had forgotten reminded me how frothy and romantic Queen Elizabeth’s hats were in the late 1940s (not surprisingly, during her newlywed early 20s). It’s also interesting how the bonnet-shaped brims dominated in the early 1950s were replaced by calots, in various forms, for the rest of the decade. What do you notice about the Queen’s hats over this two decade span?
Stay tuned tomorrow for a look at hats through the rest of the 1960s and 1970s.
Photos from: Popperfoto, Fox Photos/Hulton Archive, Harry Shepherd/Stringer, Keystone-France\Gamma-Rapho, Topical Press Agency, Paul Popper/Popperfoto, Paul Popper/Popperfoto, Paul Popper/Popperfoto, Paul Popper /Popperfoto, Keystone-France\Gamma-Rapho, Hulton Archive, PA Images, Popperfoto, Popperfoto, Fox Photos/Hulton Archive, PA Images, Fox Photos/Hulton Archive, PA Images, PA Images, PA Images, Daily Mirror/Mirrorpix, Paul Popper/Popperfoto and Fox Photos/Hulton Archive, Ray Bellisario/Popperfoto, Keystone-France\Gamma-Rapho, Fox Photos/Hulton Archive, Fox Photos/Hulton Archive, Stanley Sherman/Express, and PA Images,
73 years to a quartet of royal hats worn in May 1947 to the Chesea Flower Show. Longtime reader Mitten Mary sent me this photo yesterday, insightfully drawing attention to unique and lovely shape of Princess Elizabeth (if you can look past her linebacker fur vest) and Princess Margaret’s hats, and the dashing bowler on King George VI.
Royal Hats 