When Prince Harry's wife Meghan Markle was pictured with a new diamond-studded band on her engagement ring just 18 months after receiving the jewellery, it was assumed that she had wanted to upgrade the design.
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The Duchess of Sussex was presented with a dazzling trilogy ring with a gold band – which Harry said was Meghan's favourite – when the Duke proposed in 2017. After being spotted without her engagement or wedding rings during her pregnancy with their son Archie, it was believed that Meghan altered the original band due to swelling in her fingers. But did you know the change was actually initiated by her husband?
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Prince Harry chose to upgrade the band at the same time that he ordered a bespoke eternity ring for his wife as a gift for their first wedding anniversary.
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In royal biography, Finding Freedom, authors Omid Scobie and Carolyn Durand explain: "On May 19, 2019, Harry also surprised his wife of one year with the gift of a ring that he had created with jeweller-to-the-stars Lorraine Schwartz, a favourite of Meghan's.
Meghan's engagement ring now has a delicate diamond band
"The conflict-free diamond eternity band paid homage to the family of three with Meghan's, Archie's and Harry's birthstones (peridot, emerald, and sapphire, respectively) on the underside of the ring."
The jeweller told the authors that Harry wanted to make the eternity ring "special". She added: "'He's the loveliest person ever. So romantic, so thoughtful.' (So much so that Harry also thought to have Lorraine resize and reset Meghan's engagement ring with a new diamond band.)"
A before and after look at Meghan's engagement ring
Eagle-eyed fans first noticed the changes to Meghan's engagement ring at her post-baby appearance at Trooping the Colour in 2019. The original band was made of gold and the ring was created by Cleave and Company, Court Jewellers and Medallists to Her Majesty the Queen.
The trilogy ring boasts a large central diamond flanked on either side by two smaller jewels. The stones were specially selected by the Prince; 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.
"The ring is obviously yellow gold because that's [Meghan's] favourite and the main stone itself I sourced from Botswana and the little diamonds either side are from my mother's jewellery collection, to make sure that she's with us on this crazy journey together," Harry said during the couple's first sit-down interview with the BBC, hours after they announced their engagement.
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