Kate Middleton Wears Three Rings On Wedding Finger — Duchess's Thinking Behind Decision Is Wonderful

May 08, 2021

Kate Middleton and Prince William just celebrated their 10th wedding anniversary on April 29, 2021. The pair have remained a happy and loyal couple since they first started dating when they studied at St. Andrews University in Scotland. The couple got engaged back in 2010 on a trip to Kenya and were married the following year. 

Prince William revealed after the engagement that he had been carrying around his mother’s engagement ring in this backpack for three weeks while on the trip, waiting for the perfect moment to pop the question. He said it was his way of keeping his mother around during such a special time in his life. 

The couple has three children together: Prince George, who is 7, Princess Charlotte, age 6, and Prince Louis, who turned 3 this year. The family is very close, as we can see from their frequent social media posts and their new YouTube channel that was announced on May 5, 2021. In a photo posted on the family’s Instagram account to commemorate their anniversary, Kate’s wedding rings can be seen clearly in the foreground. Interestingly, Kate wears three rings on her wedding finger instead of the typical two. 

Most prominent is her famous engagement ring that used to belong to Prince William’s mother, Princess Diana. It is a 12-carat sapphire engagement ring sat in 18-carat gold. The ring is encrusted with 14 solitaire-cut diamonds. It is stunning, and Kate is said to treasure the ring for both its beauty and what it stands for: a tribute to Princess Diana. Read on to learn more about the rings Kate wears on her wedding finger and what they mean to her.

According to the Mirror, after Princess Diana’s passing in 1997, her sons were given the opportunity to choose what they wanted to keep from her jewelry box. Prince William chose a gold Cartier watch, while Prince Harry selected the sapphire engagement ring that Prince Charles had originally given to Diana. 

In a documentary on Amazon Prime, “The Diana Story,” Diana’s former butler, Paul Burrell, spoke about the moment Harry gave the ring to William back in 2010. "Harry said to (Wiliam), 'Wouldn't it be fitting if she had mummy’s ring?’ Then one day that ring will be sat on the throne of England. Harry gave up his precious treasure. His one thing he kept from his mother, he gave to his brother. That's selfless, kind and exactly who Diana was,” Burrell said.

Another of the three rings Kate wears on her wedding finger is her Welsh gold wedding band. Keeping up with a tradition that dates back nearly 100 years, the ring was crafted from a chunk of gold that came from Clogau St. David’s, a Welsh mine in North Wales. The mine closed in 1998 but would reopen again in 2018.

Before Prince William and Kate’s wedding in 2011, Clarence House made a statement about the ring. “The wedding ring that Catherine Middleton will wear will be made of Welsh gold. The gold was given to Prince William by The Queen shortly after the couple were engaged. It has been in the family’s possession for some years and has been in the care of the royal jewellers,” the statement read.

The third ring Kate wears is the Eclipse Diamond Eternity Ring by Annoushka. This ring is thinner than the others and can nearly be missed if you are not looking closely. The ring is made from 18-carat white gold and is believed to be a gift from William after the birth of their first child, George, in 2013. 

Kate was also seen wearing a gorgeous yellow citrine ring during Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s wedding. Citrine is a pale stone that is named after the French word for lemon, “citrone.” It was originally thought to have been a new gift from Prince William, perhaps after the birth of Prince Louis, but it turns out Kate can be seen wearing the same ring in a photo from 2008, according to Hello! Magazine.

The Duchess of Cambridge is no stranger to beautiful jewelry; she has quite the collection, with much of it coming from her husband. William gave Kate some jewelry from her favorite designer, Kiki McDonough, for their first Christmas as a married couple. Around the time of their wedding, he also gave her a pair of sapphire earrings to match her engagement ring, and she is often seen wearing them 10 years later.

If you can say one thing about William and Kate, it's that they love their family and often find ways to honor them. Kate’s rings that she wears on her wedding finger are just one example of how the couple celebrates their loved ones every day — even those who have passed on years ago.

Did you find the story behind Kate’s rings touching? What do you think of Prince Harry giving Princess Diana’s ring to his brother? Let us know your thoughts, and don’t forget to send this on to your loved ones.