Mistress of the Robes


The Mistress of the Robes is the senior lady in the Royal Household of the United Kingdom.
Formerly responsible for the queen's clothes and jewellery, the post now has the responsibility for arranging the rota of attendance of the ladies-in-waiting on the queen, along with various duties at state ceremonies. In modern times, the Mistress of the Robes is almost always a duchess. During the 17th and 18th centuries, this role often overlapped with or was replaced as First Lady of the Bedchamber.
In the past, whenever the queen was a queen regnant rather than a queen consort, the Mistress of the Robes was a political appointment, changing with the government. However, this has not been the case since the death of Queen Victoria in 1901, and Queen Elizabeth II has only had two Mistresses of the Robes in more than sixty years' reign. Queens dowager have their own Mistresses of the Robes, and in the 18th century Princesses of Wales had one too.

Mistress of the Robes to Mary I">Mary I of England">Mary I, 1553–1558