In this talk Andrew shows that following the turbulent political times between 1870 and 1929 which culminated in the final collapse of the Russian and European monarchies, countless astonishing art and jewel collections were dispersed, looted or sold.

Fortunately this coincided with the growing wealth and power of America and its industrial millionaires who were intent on creating sumptuous palaces of their own and filling them with the greatest paintings and furniture, together with weighing down their wives and daughters with the finest of recently purchased royal jewels.

In this talk, Andrew explains how these fabulously wealthy heiresses then married into the British aristocracy, bringing many of these treasures with them. He shows how, with the decline of aristocratic power and the British Empire, these legendary jewels have again been parted from their owners and can now to be seen by everyone in the world’s great museums.