Ring-a-bling-bling!
The late Princess Diana’s infamous 12-carat sapphire-and-diamond ring has been a treasured hunk of jewelry in the royal family for decades.
While Prince William, 41, gifted his now-wife Kate Middleton with the glistening rock when they became engaged back in 2010, Prince Harry reportedly also wanted the ring for his future spouse.
The Princess of Wales’ former butler Paul Burrell revealed in the Amazon Prime documentary “The Diana Story” that when she died in 1997, both of her young sons were allowed to pick out something from her sparkling collection to hold onto.
Burrell, 65, claimed that Harry, now 38, got her iconic navy blue engagement ring that she received from King (then Prince) Charles in 1981, while William, 41, desired her Cartier watch.
According to Burrell, the wristwatch was given to Diana on her 21st birthday by her father, John Spencer.
The “Entertaining With Style” author also noted that the Duke of Sussex once said, “I remember when I held mummy’s hand when I was a small boy and that ring always hurt me because it was so big.”
When it was time for the William to propose to Middleton 13 years ago, Harry had allowed his older brother to use their mother’s engagement circlet.
“Harry said to him [William]: ‘Wouldn’t it be fitting if she had mommy’s ring?’ ” Burrell said in the documentary.
“One day that ring will be sat on the throne of England. Harry gave up his precious treasure, his one thing he kept from his mother, he gave to his brother. That’s selfless, kind, and exactly who Diana was,” the ex-royal household servant added.
Fast forward to late 2017, the Invictus Games founder became engaged to love Meghan Markle and opted to give her a custom-made ring that had remnants of his mother’s prized gemstone collection.
The “Suits” star’s engagement ring consisted of a gold band with carefully selected diamonds he picked out, and two stones were from Diana’s collection.
The main diamond came from Botswana, a special place where Harry and Markle, 42, often vacationed together.
When the couple sat down for a joint interview following the happy engagement moment, they described the ring and how it helped keep Diana close to their hearts.
Harry explained at the time about the meaning behind the gift: “The ring is obviously yellow gold because that’s her favorite. The little diamonds on either side are from my mother’s jewelry collection to make sure that she’s with us on this crazy journey together.”
Markle also divulged her sentiments about her ring and its connection to the People’s Princess.
“I think everything about Harry’s thoughtfulness is — and the inclusion of that and obviously not being able to meet his mom — it’s so important to me to know that she’s a part of this with us,” she said.
“And it’s incredibly special. And you know to be able to have this which sort of links where you come from and Botswana which is important to us, and it’s perfect,” she added.
Source link