George Boyle
When Prince Harry proposed to Meghan Markle in 2017, he designed the engagement ring himself. The trilogy ring featured a large cushion-cut diamond from Botswana, flanked by two smaller jewels from Princess Diana's personal collection. In 2019, Meghan altered the ring, swapping the original gold band for a thinner, yellow gold micro-pavé band. This sparked speculation about whether Prince Harry minded the changes to the ring he had designed.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Reason for redesigning the ring | To have a cohesive set of three rings: her engagement ring, her simple Welsh gold wedding band, and her new eternity ring |
| Who redesigned the ring | Jeweler Lorraine Schwartz |
| Who designed the original ring | Prince Harry |
| Who gifted the eternity ring | Prince Harry |
| Occasion for eternity ring | First wedding anniversary and the birth of their first child |
| Original band | Plain gold band crafted by Cleave & Company |
| New band | Thin micro-pavé band |
| Number of times the ring has been redesigned | 4 times |
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What You'll Learn
Harry designed Meghan's engagement ring
When Prince Harry proposed to Meghan Markle in 2017, he designed the engagement ring himself. The ring features a cushion-cut diamond, estimated to be between 2.5 and 3 carats, sourced from Botswana, where the couple took their first holiday together. The central stone is supported by two round diamonds from Princess Diana's personal jewellery collection. Harry revealed that he included his mother's diamonds to ensure she was with them on their "crazy journey together".
Meghan was clearly touched by how Harry incorporated his mother's legacy into the ring. "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," Meghan said. The ring also has a yellow gold band because that is Meghan's favourite.
In 2019, Meghan altered the ring for the first time, swapping out the original band for a much thinner, yellow gold micro-pavé band set with diamonds. The jeweller who reportedly made the adjustments, Lorraine Schwartz, complimented Harry, saying, "He’s the loveliest person ever. So romantic, so thoughtful." Scobie added, "So much so that Harry also thought to have Lorraine resize and reset Meghan’s engagement ring with a new diamond band."
Harry and Meghan also reportedly had Schwartz create an eternity band to pair with her engagement ring, which featured each of their birthstones as well as that of their son, Archie. The eternity band was a gift from Harry to Meghan in honour of their one-year anniversary and the birth of their first child.
In 2022, there was speculation that Meghan had altered the ring for a second time when she attended the Invictus Games in The Hague. Some believed she had added additional diamonds to the setting surrounding the central diamond. The ring was absent from Meghan's finger for a number of appearances towards the end of 2022, with reports noting that it had been taken in for servicing.
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Meghan changed the band
Meghan Markle has altered her engagement ring from Prince Harry multiple times. The original band, crafted by Cleave & Company, was made of plain yellow gold. However, in 2019, Meghan opted for a thinner, yellow gold band set with micro-pavé diamonds. This change was reportedly suggested by Prince Harry, who worked with jeweller Lorraine Schwartz to resize and reset the ring.
The decision to alter the band may have stemmed from Meghan's preference for dainty jewellery and her desire to have a cohesive set of three rings: her engagement ring, her simple Welsh gold wedding band, and her new eternity ring. The eternity ring was a gift from Harry to commemorate their first wedding anniversary and the birth of their first child. It was designed by Harry and crafted by Lorraine Schwartz, featuring each of their birthstones and that of their son, Archie.
The changes to Meghan's engagement ring sparked speculation, with some believing that she had altered it for a second time in 2022 by adding additional diamonds to the setting surrounding the central diamond. However, it was also reported that the ring was absent from Meghan's finger for several appearances towards the end of that year, suggesting it may have been taken in for servicing.
Overall, Meghan's decision to change the band of her engagement ring appears to be driven by a desire for a more cohesive ring set and a preference for more delicate jewellery. The alterations also reflect the thoughtful and romantic gestures of Prince Harry, who has ensured that his late mother, Princess Diana, is symbolically included in their engagement and eternity rings.
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The ring features Princess Diana's diamonds
When Prince Harry proposed to Meghan Markle in 2017, he designed the engagement ring himself. The ring features a cushion-cut diamond, estimated to be between 2.5 and 3 carats, sourced from Botswana, where the couple vacationed for Meghan's 36th birthday. The central stone is supported by two round diamonds from Princess Diana's personal jewellery collection. Harry detailed this in a 2017 BBC interview, saying, "The little diamonds on either side are from my mother's jewelry collection to make sure she's with us on this crazy journey together". Meghan called it an "incredible" piece of jewellery, explaining that it was "important" for her to know that Harry's late mother was "a part of this with us".
In 2019, Meghan altered the ring for the first time, replacing the original plain gold band crafted by Cleave & Company with a thinner, yellow gold band set with micro-pavé diamonds. The jeweller who reportedly made the adjustments, Lorraine Schwartz, complimented Harry, saying, "He’s the loveliest person ever. So romantic, so thoughtful". Royal expert Omid Scobie added that Harry also thought to have Schwartz resize and reset Meghan’s engagement ring with a new diamond band.
There has been further speculation that Meghan might have altered the ring a second time in 2022, adding additional diamonds to the setting surrounding the central diamond. The ring was absent from Meghan's finger for several appearances towards the end of 2022, with reports noting that it had been taken in for servicing.
Princess Diana's striking blue sapphire and diamond engagement ring has become one of the most iconic pieces of jewellery in Britain. When Prince William proposed to Kate Middleton, he gave her this ring, ensuring that his late mother was still involved in the engagement. Kate chose a blue dress to match the ring for her joint interview with William, and William explained that giving Kate his mother's ring was his way of keeping his mother involved in the excitement of the engagement.
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Harry gifted Meghan an eternity ring
Prince Harry designed Meghan Markle's engagement ring himself. The ring featured a three-carat cushion-cut diamond from Botswana, where the couple vacationed for Meghan's 36th birthday and where Harry decided he wanted to marry her. The ring also featured two diamonds from Princess Diana's personal collection. However, Meghan has altered the ring a few times since.
In 2019, Meghan changed the band to a thinner, yellow gold version set with micro-pavé diamonds. The jeweller who made the adjustments, Lorraine Schwartz, complimented Harry, saying, "He’s the loveliest person ever. So romantic, so thoughtful." Scobie added that "Harry also thought to have Lorraine resize and reset Meghan’s engagement ring with a new diamond band."
Harry and Meghan also reportedly had Schwartz create an eternity band to pair with her engagement ring. This was an anniversary gift from Harry to Meghan. The eternity ring features the birthstones of Meghan (a green peridot), Harry (a blue sapphire), and their son, Archie (an emerald). Eternity rings are often presented to women as gifts on significant anniversaries or to commemorate a child's birth since they represent eternity, love, and dedication towards a family.
Meghan was first seen wearing the eternity ring at the Trooping the Colour ceremony in London in 2019. This was her first public appearance since the birth of her son, Archie.
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Meghan's wedding ring is Welsh gold
Meghan Markle's wedding ring is a classic, understated piece of jewellery. It is an unadorned, highly polished gold band made from rare Welsh gold. The gold comes from the Clogau St. David's Gold Mine, which was once the largest gold producer in the United Kingdom. The mine was initially used for copper and lead, but in 1854, a miner discovered gold, and it went on to produce over 80,000 ounces of the precious metal.
The use of Welsh gold in Meghan's wedding ring honours a long-standing tradition in the royal family, started by Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, in the first part of the 20th century. Each royal bride since has received a custom-made ring made from the same gold, including Queen Elizabeth, Princess Diana, Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, and Kate Middleton, the Duchess of Cambridge.
Prince Harry wrote in his 2023 memoir, Spare, about how there was only just enough of the family gold to create a band for Meghan when they married in 2018. He recounted how the same gold had been used for his grandmother's wedding band, as well as for Princess Margaret, and that by the time of his wedding, there might not be any left.
Meghan's wedding band beautifully complements her engagement ring, which Prince Harry designed himself. The engagement ring features a cushion-cut diamond from Botswana, estimated to be between 2.5 and 3 carats, with two round diamonds from Princess Diana's personal collection on either side. The yellow gold band of the engagement ring was changed in 2019 to a thinner, micro-pavé design, also set with diamonds.
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Frequently asked questions
Yes, Meghan Markle changed her wedding ring in 2019. The original band was made of gold and was crafted by Cleave & Company. She replaced it with a thin micro-pavé band.
There is speculation that Meghan Markle has redesigned her wedding ring more than once. The ring was noticeably absent from her finger in a number of appearances towards the end of 2022.
Yes, Meghan Markle changed her engagement ring in 2019. The original band was a plain gold band, which she replaced with a thin yellow gold micro-pavé band.
There is no evidence to suggest that Prince Harry minded Meghan changing her wedding ring. In fact, it was reportedly Harry's idea to make the change, and he worked with the jeweller Lorraine Schwartz to redesign it.
