The theft of the Irish Crown Jewels is a mystery that goes back over a century, and remains unsolved. The Jewels were not the equivalent of the English Crown Jewels, rather the insignia of the Order of St. Patrick, the British Order of Chivalry associated with Ireland and disappeared in June 1907.
Supposed to have been assembled from diamonds belonging to Queen Charlotte, they were presented to the Order by King William IV in 1831.The Order itself technically still exists, although there has not been a granting of Knighthood since 1936. The Queen remains the Sovereign of the Order, and the Ulster King of Arms, the position of the person entrusted with the safe keeping of the regalia, still exists today.
Taken from the National Archives, NAI CSORP/1913/18119
The Jewels, valued at $250, 000 in the clipping from the New York Times below, were stolen from a safe located in the Office of the Ulster King of Arms, in the shadow of the then Detective Headquarters in Dublin Castle. The theft occurred in 1907; they were last seen in the safe in which they were stored on June 11th of that year, with the theft not discovered until the third of July, three weeks later. King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra were due to arrive in Dublin for the International Exhibition and plans were afoot to knight Lord Castletown during their visit. The process would have required the regalia of the Order and was postponed as a result. Although the King is said to have been angered by the theft, the visit went ahead.
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Donal
Ciarán
Sam
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