One of the most photographed rings in royal history is sitting on the finger of Kate Middleton, but it was actually a keepsake Harry took from his mom when she died.
Kate Middletons gorgeous engagement ring made headlines of its own when Prince William popped the question. After all, it once rested on the finger of Will’s late mother, Princess Diana. But it was actually Prince Harry who owned the ring, not his brother. So how did it end up on the finger of Kate and not Meghan? People are wondering why Prince Harry gave away princess Diana’s engagement ring.
According to Hello!, Harry gave the ring to his brother once Kate and William’s relationship got serious and William was going to propose. It’s reported that Harry liked the idea of having his mom’s ring on the throne.
Paul Burrell, Diana’s former butler, revealed this intel during an interview for the Amazon Prime documentary The Diana Story, explaining that the brothers were allowed to keep an item from their mom when she passed.
Per Paul, William said something to the effect of, “I’d like mummy’s Cartier watch, the one that Grandpa Spencer gave to her for her 21st birthday,” and Harry kept the engagement ring.
“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,” Harry reportedly said.
Had Harry been the first brother to propose, Meghan likely would have been wearing the keepsake. But don’t shed a tear for her, because she didn’t exactly lose out on the amazing jewelry lottery, either.
RELATED: Princess Diana Avoided Wearing This Fashion Accessory
Meghan’s engagement ring is composed of diamonds chosen by Harry himself. “The central diamond is from Botswana, where the couple previously vacationed together, and the other two diamonds are from his late mother’s personal collection,” explains Hello!.
RELATED: Was Kate Middleton Throwing Shade At Meghan By Wearing These To Archie’s Christening?
And even though she didn’t get Princess Di’s engagement ring, she did receive another piece of jewelry from her would-be mother-in-law. At her wedding reception, she was seen wearing a stunning aquamarine cocktail ring, which many assumed was given to Meghan by her newly minted husband. From Harper’s Bazaar:
“Princess Diana left her jewelry to the wives of her sons in her will, and given that Meghan wasn’t officially a married woman until the end of the ceremony, she may have chosen to wait to wear a piece from Diana’s collection until after the marriage was official.”
