Eight years since Sofía Palazuelo's wedding: the bride said no to a tiara, and the tiara was worn by her mother-in-law - as a sapphire necklace

On 6 October 2018, the Liria Palace in Madrid, an 18th-century mansion that has been the stage for the most important events of the Fitz-James Stuart family, witnessed one more: the wedding of the Duke and Duchess of Huéscar. Fernando Fitz-James Stuart y Solís, son of Carlos Fitz-James Stuart, the 19th Duke of Alba, and Matilde Solís-Beaumont, and Sofía Palazuelo Barroso said "I do" in the morning.

The groom, in the uniform of the Royal Equestrian Society of Seville, walked in on the arm of his mother, Matilde Solís-Beaumont. Sofía arrived with her brother, Fernando.

The wedding dress was made by her aunt, the designer Teresa Palazuelo, who died in November 2022, four years after the wedding. The gown had an A-line silhouette, a discreet V-neckline and short sleeves, and from the shoulders fell a spectacular detachable cape that doubled as a train. On the back was one of Teresa's signatures: a long row of covered buttons, which the bride later said took quite a while to fasten. An aunt sewing her niece's wedding dress - that's a family wedding in the real sense of the word, not a catalogue.

A bride without a tiara in a house of tiaras

Sofía Palazuelo broke with the tradition of House of Alba brides and didn't wear a tiara. Her example would later be followed by Belén Corsini at her wedding to Carlos Fitz-James in May 2021. Instead of a tiara, she wore a simple feathered hair ornament by milliner Teresa Bris, over a modest ballerina-inspired bun.

So who wore a tiara at this wedding?

The mother-in-law. Matilde Solís, who was also the wedding's sponsor, chose an elegant and simple navy suit by Lorenzo Caprile, a Chantilly lace mantilla and one special detail: a spectacular sapphire necklace. Except that it was actually a tiara that had belonged to her mother, María Isabel Martínez Campos, Marchioness of Motilla - who had herself worn it as a necklace at her daughter's wedding to Carlos Fitz-James Stuart, today's Duke of Alba.

The piece was made by the jewellers Ansorena at the beginning of the 20th century and can be worn either as a tiara or as a sapphire and diamond necklace. It is known as the "Motilla", after the Marquises of Motilla, although according to some experts it was earlier linked to the Duchy of Seo de Urgel and the County of Barbate.

This story holds everything old families know about weddings: the bride can give up the sparkle, but the family jewels always find a way into the room. In the Balkans it's grandma's gold ducats; for them, it's a tiara turned into a necklace. The logic is the same: a wedding isn't just a day for two people, but for every generation before them.