When William proposed to his long-term girlfriend, he used an incredibly special ring from his late mother’s personal jewellery collection. The ring was originally given to Lady Diana when she got engaged to Prince Charles in 1981.
Diana actually continued to wear the ring even after they separated, and gave it back to Kensington Palace when their divorce was finalised in 1996.
She was even pictured wearing her engagement ring on August 28, 1996, the day her divorce from Prince Charles became final.
Prince William said at the time of their engagement that he used the ring as a way of making sure his mother didn’t miss out on their wedding day.
He said: “I thought it was quite nice because obviously, she’s not going to be around to share any of the fun and excitement.
It has been replicated countless times by countless jewellers around the world since it was first unveiled in 1981.
Originally, the ring didn’t go down particularly well, despite the 12 carat Ceylon sapphire cluster ring being from the royal jeweller Garrard & Co, and going on to become the most famous engagement ring in the world over time.
Kate also has a matching set for her engagement ring which she has been pictured in multiple times.
The set includes a sapphire and diamond cluster necklace, and matching earrings.
However, despite Meghan Markle missing out on the original ring, she didn’t miss out on another royal tradition when she got her own wedding ring from Prince Harry.
For nearly a century, royal wedding bands have been made from nuggets of rare, pure Welsh gold from a specific mine: the Clogau St. David’s gold mine.
The royal women who have worn Welsh gold wedding bands include the Queen’s sister Princess Margaret, the Queen’s daughter Princess Anne, Princess Diana, Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, and the Duchess of Cambridge.
Meghan Markle also received a wedding band of Welsh gold when she married Prince Harry in back in 2018.
