The late Queen Elizabeth II’s 'witty' nickname for £50m diamond brooch

The late Queen Elizabeth reportedly had a 'witty' nickname for a £50m diamond brooch that was gifted from her grandmother.

• The late monarch is said to have called a diamond brooch worth £50m 'Granny's Chips' as it was gifted to her by her grandmother.
• Queen Elizabeth II's quirky name for the very valuable item of jewellery has been revealed in a report. 
• This royal news comes after the meaning behind Princess Anne's military uniform she wore at the Queen's funeral is revealed.

The late Queen Elizabeth II had a remarkable collection of jewels but is reported that she used the 'witty' name Granny's Chips for a brooch that is worth £50m.

The monarch, who reigned for 70 years, died earlier this month aged 96 but during her lifetime she inherited a diamond brooch from her grandmother back in 2012 and she notably wore it as part of her Diamond Jubilee celebrations. 

Kate Middleton wore a diamond and pearl Queen brooch to the late Queen Elizabeth II's funeral and Princess Charlotte wore her own horse-themed brooch to remember her late 'gan gan'.

You might not know that the two diamonds that make up the brooch, are affectionately known to the Royal Family as "Granny's Chips". These stones, which amount to 158 carats, are cut from the gargantuan Cullinan diamond in 1905. 

The Cullinan III and Cullinan IV diamonds had previously been worn by Queen Mary during her coronation in 1911.

The jewels, which hold both magnificent historic and monetary value, were passed down to Queen Elizabeth II from Queen Mary, who wore then for her coronation in 1911. 

And they were considered so precious that Queen Elizabeth II, who was gifted them ahead of her 1953 coronation, only wore them on a handful of occasions.

According to reports the nickname 'Granny's Chips' were not only a nod to the Queen's grandmother but also that they were 'chipped' from a larger stone.

One fan tweeted, "Such wit too referring to an...£50m brooch as 'grannys chips' because its 94 & 63 carat stones are mere chips compared to the 530 and 317 carat main rocks from the 3106 carat boulder that was found not by a native worker but by mysterious chance by the site manager."

During a state visit to the Netherlands in 1958, Queen Elizabeth wore the brooch when she visited Asscher’s, the site of the initial Cullinan cutting. Present for the visit was Louis Asscher, who had witnessed the cutting of the great diamond in 1908. Her majesty removed the brooch so Mr. Asscher could have a better look - a gesture which was said to have reduced him to tears - as she was overheard casually referring to it as “Granny’s Chips”.

They are considered the most valuable in the world after scientists claimed the diamonds pre-date dinosaurs, and any other life form, after being formed 250-400 miles below the earth's surface.

It's understood that the jewels were originally gifted to King Edward VII as a badge of loyalty from the South African British Colony in 1905.