From elaborate dresses and extravagant guest lists, royal weddings are nothing but a lavish, expensive affair. And the engagement rings don’t disappoint. They often live up to the standard and involve the gifting of often priceless, one-of-a-kind family heirlooms.
The price is not a factor, with many royals looking for diamonds that exceed the usual one to two-carat standard. With exciting combinations, unique gemstones and the extravagant types of rings gifted, there’s no wonder so many of us dream of marrying into royalty!
Explore the incredible engagement rings, as we take you through some of our favourite royal diamond creations…
Photo Credit: Instyle.com, Originally Sotheby’s.
Grace Kelly’s iconic engagement ring is one of the most recognisable diamonds of the mid 20th century. Having proposed initially with a Cartier eternity band of rubies and diamonds, Prince Rainier III of Monaco, noticed other Hollywood leading ladies were wearing bigger, glistening rings and decided to purchase something a little more substantial. Rainier ordered an incredible 10.5-carat emerald cut diamond, accompanied and set with two baguettes cut diamonds. Quintessentially royal in every aspect of the word, this engagement ring is unique in its size, cut and beauty. Royals have gone above and beyond Prince Rainier, yet no love story is as unique as that between His Royal Highness and Hollywood royalty Grace Kelly.
Possibly another extravagant royal engagement ring is that of The Duchess of Windsor. As their epic love story would entail, this ring was certainly fitting. Wallis Simpson, the Duchess of Windsor, and Edward VIII, who decided to abdicate his throne for her, purchased an incredible 19.77-carat emerald Cartier engagement ring. An inscription read “We are ours now 27 X 36,” shorthand for the day Edward proposed, October 27, 1936.
Photo Credit: Instyle.com
Emeralds are not traditional engagement gems, yet Edward found no other ring that spoke to him as this one did. Set in classic platinum engagement ring setting, the 19.77carat rectangular emerald was flanked by diamond baguettes. The Duchess and Edward received mounting pressure before his abdication, but in true romantic style the King, in his last public address said
...I have found it impossible to carry the heavy burden of responsibility and to discharge my duties as king as I would wish to do without the help and support of the woman I love
Princess Diana’s engagement with Prince Charles is a celebration the world will never forget. Having become engaged at only 20-years, Princess Diana selected an engagement ring which consisted of 14 solitaire diamonds with a 12-carat oval blue Ceylon sapphire, all set in 18-carat white gold. At the time, in 1981, it cost approximately $36,000, but today the iconic British royal design is truly priceless. Her wedding was as spectacular as the ring that she adorned, with over 750 million people watching from around the world.
Following her death, her son Prince William, in 2010, proposed to Catherine Middleton with the priceless heirloom.
Following the proposal, Prince William stated, “It’s my mother’s engagement ring, and it’s very special to me, as Kate is very special to me now as well…it was only right the two were put together”
It’s as if history is repeating itself again, as Hollywood royalty meets monarchy, when Prince Harry marries Meghan Markle in May. The engagement ring, like the Duchess of Cambridge, has two diamonds from Prince Harry’s late mother’s personal collection. At the centre of the trilogy, is a diamond from Botswana, where the couple spent time together over the last year and a half. According to gemologists in the UK, the centre diamond is an elongated cushion cut diamond, suggested to be around three to four carats, and the side diamonds likely oval or round cut, about 0.75 carats. Markle’s ring is set in Welsh gold, which lends itself to a long royal tradition. The British Royal Family have been using Welsh gold wedding rings for over half a century - with the tradition only continuing with the new royal couple.
Whether it’s the British Royal Family, or that of other monarchs, royalty never seem to disappoint with the engagement rings they adorn. Although the rings of Grace Kelly and Duchess of Windsor are not as commonly bestowed today as they once were, the engagement rings we’re admiring are still just as magical and elegant.
To browse our engagement ring collection, head to our website!