Her Floating Palace

British Heritage Series

House Of Gharats was founded in Great Britain, and for Neishaa Gharat, founder and creative director, it is now her home away from home. Neishaa’s love of British history, culture and the monarchy inspired her to explore the meaning of ‘home’ for Queen Elizabeth II, and led to the creation of ‘Her Floating Palace’ collection as part of the British Heritage Series.

Inspired By Queen Elizabeth II & Royal Britannia

‘Her Floating Palace’ collection takes you on a journey of freedom and discovery, following Queen Elizabeth’s love of The Royal Yacht Britannia as we explore the women behind the crown.

The Royal Yacht Britannia was a ‘floating palace’ on which the Royal Family could make overseas visits, entertain foreign heads of state and come together as a family to enjoy leisure time.

The ship’s name was a closely guarded secret, only being revealed when the Queen smashed a bottle of Empire wine – champagne was considered too extravagant in post-war Britain – and announced to the expectant crowds “I name this ship Britannia… I wish success to her and all who sail in her”.

Many summers saw her travelling to the Cowes Week regatta off the Isle of Wight, and then on to Scotland for the Royal Family’s holiday in Balmoral. Elizabeth was often seen wandering the decks of the Britannia in an old headscarf and slacks with a camera round her neck, the Britannia was not only the monarch’s floating embassy, but a secluded ‘country house at sea’ where the Queen could truly relax. With so many happy memories from childhood to adulthood, Britannia has played a vital role in Her Majesty’s life away from the monarchy.

Scarf & Pocket Square Collection

Bringing the family together on board the Britannia  

The Queen’s time on the Britannia allowed her to spend leisure time with her much loved family, outside of the public eye. In the afternoon, a canvas swimming pool was occasionally put up for the children on the upper deck and Prince Philip would sometimes set up his easel to paint whilst the Queen tended to official papers.

The Prince’s love of painting has been depicted in the design of the silk scarf collection using a wooden easel and paints, the painting depicts the message ‘My wife the Queen’. It was important to incorporate a colourful depiction of the Prince to highlight both his significance and supportive presence within Her Majesty’s working and personal life.

The evening saw the royal family retire to the drawing room for coffee, liqueurs and the Queen’s favourite chocolate mints. The rest of the evening was spent playing cards, doing jigsaw puzzles or listening to a tune on the piano, as Princess Margret often played. In the design of the scarf Princess Margaret is depicted playing the piano in her classic white gloves.

The Queen loved being able to spend quality time with her family, and we playfully illustrated the Queen’s leisure time in the scarf.

A royal prank 

On a solo venture from Australia to Antarctica, Prince Philip grew a beard, something that came to represent his humorous and fun character. Consequently, the Queen decided to pull a prank on him on his return, arranging everyone in the royal entourage, including herself, to put on fake whiskers just before the Duke arrived. It was a comedy moment when the Queen and Duke were finally reunited.

We at the House of Gharats are fascinated by the Queen’s character behind closed doors, when in the presence of those she is closest to. It’s stories like this which show her humorous and loving personality and allow us to see the woman behind the crown.

Queenly tea time

The only thing more British than afternoon tea, is the Queen herself! As a very prominent feature of not only the British culture but the Queen’s voyages on The Royal Britannia it felt only right to include this British tradition into the design of our collection. The design of the scarf pictures a classic three tiered afternoon tea stand, adorned with miniature cakes, scones and sandwiches as well as an ornate silver teapot.

The Queen’s voyages on the Britannia were a time to relax and indulge, alongside friends and family. At 5pm Elizabeth was said to take afternoon tea, which always included wafer-thin cucumber and salmon sandwiches, loose leaf tea and scones. One chef on the Britannia recalled that the sandwiches were only ever triangular because of an old royal superstition that rectangular sandwiches resembled coffins and might imply that the kitchen staff wished the monarch ill.

Camera in hand

Throughout the years Queen Elizabeth has often been spotted with a camera in hand, her friends and family describe her as an avid photographer. We illustrated a vintage camera into the design of the silk scarf collection to depict the sense of adventure the Queen loved to document. The first camera she was ever given was a Box Brownie by her father before the war, she has since used a gold Rollei camera when travelling to take in some of the sights before being gifted a Leica camera in 1958, which she used during her travels on the Britannia. 

Royal luggage fit for a Queen

The Rolls-Royce has been a long standing integral part of the Queen’s travel arrangements, used in almost every official journey at home and abroad. The Royal Yacht Britannia housed, in a specially constructed garage on board, a number of the Queen’s Rolls Royces.

It was important when designing Her Floating Palace Collection to bring together the elements from the Royal Britannia which created the Queen’s much loved ‘home away from home’. One of the Queen’s Rolls Royce is now being displayed on the Royal Yacht Britannia, which has been turned into a museum.

The Queen at sea

A magnificent curtain of decorative fabric can be seen on the scarf, reaching out into the sky and tying behind the ship to create a knot. The fabric is embellished with her name and inscribed with a quote from Her Majesty’s description of the Britannia being “the one place in the world I feel most free”.

The scarf’s design illustrates a number of nautical symbols; a knot, a compass and an anchor, all of which have their own meaning. Firstly, the knot, this symbolises connection, family and union, all of which the Queen values very highly. To Her Majesty the Britannia was a place where she was able to connect and enjoy the company of her loved ones.

Secondly, the anchor, this represents stability, composure and calm. Lastly, the compass, with the power of four cardinal directions, where east and west as the starting and ending points of the sun are the most important of all. ‘A compass was so a sailor could always find his way home’. The sun in the center of the compass represents life, hope, happiness, youth and immortality.

Welcome home. Passing through London Bridge

The iconic London Bridge has been illustrated to represent a momentous occasion in the ship’s history, marking the royal family’s return home after the six month tour of the Commonwealth. During her tour the Queen visited many countries which had never before seen their ruling monarch and on her return A huge red-and-white banner was hung from Tower Bridge bearing the words, “Welcome Home”.

As members of the Commonwealth Fashion Council at House of Gharats’ are co-creating a new future. Her Majesty’s determined character and devotion to the Commonwealth makes her a strong figurehead, and it’s the strength of this woman behind the crown which fascinates us here at the House of Gharats.

A ‘home away from home’

Britannia travelled 1,087,623 nautical miles around the globe, made 696 visits to foreign ports and 272 visits in British waters, but most importantly this Royal Yacht played a vital role throughout the life of Queen Elizabeth. The Royal Yacht Britannia was indeed more than just a boat, it was a place where the Royal Family could be off-shore, secluded and go on an adventure.

The Queen famously shed a tear after disembarking for the final time as clocks on board were stopped at 3.01pm – the exact time she was piped ashore. It was important to us at the House of Gharats to illustrate not only the ship’s story but the Queen’s intimate life onboard whilst at sea in order to communicate the value of her ‘home away from home’.

Now retired from royal service, Britannia is permanently berthed at Ocean Terminal, Leith in Edinburgh, Scotland, where it was opened as a Museum in 1999 by His Royal Highness the Duke of Edinburgh. The Queen and the Royal Family’s vessel for over 44 years, the Royal Yacht Britannia has become one of the most famous yachts in the world.