Princess Diana’s ring, tiara and jewelry: How Meghan Markle and Kate Middleton pay homage to their late mother-in-law

'To make sure that she's with us on this crazy journey together'
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Megan C. Hills27 February 2019

While Meghan Markle and Kate Middleton never got a chance to meet their husbands' mother Princess Diana, both Duchesses have paid homage to the Princess by wearing pieces of her much-loved jewelry.

Princess Diana wore a number of valuable earrings, tiaras and rings while was married to Prince Charles. After their divorce, she was allowed to keep her collection in the settlement - though one of the most iconic pieces she wore, the Lover's Knot tiara, was on loan from the Queen so remained in the royal collection.

In a "letter of wishes" left by Diana, the Princess reportedly wrote, "I would like you to allocate all my jewellery to the share to be held by my sons, so that their wives may, in due course, have it or use it. I leave the exact division of the jewellery to your discretion."

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Now that her sons are both married, we've started to see some of Princess Diana's favourite pieces re-enter the public sphere - looking just as beautiful on her daughters-in-law as they did on her decades ago.

Here's how Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle have styled Princess Diana's pieces...

Princess Diana's engagement ring

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Worn by: Kate Middleton

This ring is perhaps the most famous sapphire ring in the world, as it once belonged to Princess Diana and now sits on Kate Middleton’s third finger. The ring features a 12 carat ceylon sapphire and 14 solitaire diamond set in 18 karat white gold. The Sun reported that the ring is reportedly worth £393,850 and while it’s iconic now, it stirred up a bit of debate at the time it was first presented.

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After Prince Charles and Diana got engaged in 1981, he presented her with a selection of ring options from Garrard. Diana picked the sapphire ring - then worth £47,000 - which was part of a Garrard selection inspired by a brooch given to Queen Victoria as a wedding present. Despite its royal inspiration, according to the Daily Mail the ring drew controversy as it was “featured in Garrard’s catalogue” and “wasn’t bespoke” - meaning that anybody could buy it if they had £47,000 to hand.

Diana kept the ring following her divorce from Prince Charles and it was passed down to her sons after she passed. Vogue reported that the ring was said to initially have gone to Harry, but he “later decided that the ring should be on the finger of the future Queen of England” and passed it back to his brother.

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The rest is history as we now know Prince William proposed to Kate Middleton with it in 2010, after carrying it around in his suitcase for three weeks while on a trip in Africa. He said at the time, “[The ring is] very special to me. As Kate's very special to me now, it was right to put the two together.”

He continued, “It was my way of making sure my mother didn't miss out on today and the excitement, and the fact that we're going to spend the rest of our lives together.”

Meghan Markle's engagement ring

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Prince Harry approached his proposal to Meghan Markle a little differently from his brother, choosing to pay homage to Diana by crafting something new from her collection. Harry worked with jewellers Cleave & Co. to create a three stone diamond ring, which included one stone from Botswana framed by two smaller ones from Princess Diana’s personal collection.

During their engagement interview with the BBC, Prince Harry explained, “The ring is obviously yellow gold because that's [Markle's] favorite and the main stone itself I sourced from Botswana and the little diamonds either side are from my mother's jewelry collection, to make sure that she's with us on this crazy journey together.”

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Meghan continued, “Everything about Harry’s thoughtfulness and the inclusion of [Princess Diana’s stones] 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. It’s incredibly special to be able to have this [ring], which sort of links where you come from and Botswana, which is important to us. It's perfect.”

The Lover’s Knot tiara

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Seen on: Kate Middleton

As with many royal tiaras, the story of this fabulous accessory began over a century ago. The House of Garrad created the piece for Queen Mary in 1914, using jewels from another piece called the Ladies of England tiara to craft it. It eventually became one of Queen Elizabeth II’s favourites in the 50s, and was later loaned to Princess Diana after she married Prince Charles in 1981.

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After that it became one of Diana’s favourites, despite the fact she once claimed it was so heavy it hurt her head. It’s one of the most striking in the royal collection, with large dangling pearls, and Diana was photographed with it many times. But after she and Prince Charles finally divorced in 1996, Diana was unable to wear it as it was part of the royal collection (though she was allowed to keep “all the jewelry she [had] amassed during her marriage”.) For years the tiara fell out of the public eye, but then in 2015 Kate Middleton brought it back into the limelight when she wore it to a Buckingham Palace reception.

Since then, it’s become one of Kate’s favourites - most recently worn to greet the Netherlands’ Royal Family at Buckingham Palace.

Diana's butterfly earrings

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Seen on: Meghan Markle

These delicate butterfly studs, set with diamonds and deep blue sapphires, made a couple of appearances over the course of Meghan Markle and Prince Harry’s royal tour of Australia last year.

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The earrings once belonged to Princess Diana, who was photographed wearing them on a royal tour of her own in 1986, when she and her then-husband Prince Charles were visiting Vancouver. If you look closely at the photograph, you’ll notice the earrings actually come with a matching necklace, though Meghan doesn't appear to have worn that in public.

The gold and sapphire bangle

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Seen on: Meghan Markle

Meghan’s sense of style is chic but minimal, which is probably why this understated bangle has become one of her favourites. She was spotted wearing the bangle on the first official day of her Australian royal tour with Prince Harry, when she paired it with a white Karen Vee dress and beige trench coat. More recently, she wore it to the premiere of Cirque du Soleil’s newest show Totem at the Royal Albert Hall.

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Princess Diana wore the bangle to more casual events, like in 1990, when she was visiting members of the public at Lord Gage Centre, and at an appearance at the Alfred Dunhill shop in 1994. Deborah Papas, a gemologist, told Express that the bracelet appears to be made from “18ct yellow gold with a cabochon deep blue sapphire at each end”, and “a row of pave set small diamonds set in white gold”.

The bracelet is estimated to be worth between £3000-4000.

The blue sapphire earrings

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Worn by: Kate Middleton

Diana was a fan of sapphire jewelry and these drop earrings are designed in the same style as her engagement ring. Fittingly, the earrings have since passed with her ceylon sapphire engagement ring into Kate Middleton’s hands. According to Kate’s Closet, the drop earrings were initially stud earrings, but were then remodeled.

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According to the Daily Mail the earrings were reportedly “from the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia”, who gave Princess Diana a large collection of sapphire and diamond jewellery. They also reported that the earrings were made from “the strap of the watch she was given” and that the studs had removable pendant drops, though Diana generally wore them without.

Since then, they’ve become a staple in Kate Middleton’s jewellery box - alongside her large collection of Monica Vinader earrings.

The aquamarine ring

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Worn by: Meghan Markle

Following Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s wedding at St George’s Chapel in Windsor, the couple found time for a quick outfit change. Although all eyes were on Meghan Markle’s gorgeous Stella McCartney dress, she also wore a statement aquamarine ring - a piece that used to belong to Princess Diana.

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The ring was made in 1997 by Asprey, who confirmed it was the same piece, and that Harry had “given it to his new bride as a wedding gift”. Diana was seen wearing it in the 90s, most memorably to a 1997 auction at Christie’s. Express reported that Diana was said to have commissioned the ring following her divorce from Prince Charles, which was designed to match a bracelet she already owned.

Meghan also wore the ring on the royal tour last year, wearing it for a state reception in Tonga along with another sleek white gown (this time by Theia).

The pearl and diamond drop earrings

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Worn by: Kate Middleton

Kate Middleton was a vision in white at the BAFTAs recently, stepping out in an Alexander McQueen gown and a pair of Princess Diana’s dramatic pearl and diamond earrings. According to The Telegraph, the earrings feature “various cuts of diamonds, with a cluster of marquise cut stones in the centre” as well as “silver-toned South Sea pearl drops”.

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They were a favourite of Princess Diana and she wore them frequently to her more glamorous events, including a gala in New York City in 1995 and another in 1997 in Washington DC.

Style File: Princess Diana

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