Sentimental Jewels Meghan Markle Inherited from Diana Including Those That Princess Wore before Her Death

Before Princess Diana died, she made it clear she wanted her sons, Princes William and Harry, to inherit her jewelry. Harry's wife has worn six jewelry pieces that her husband inherited from his late mother.

While married to Duchess Meghan since 2018, Prince Harry has made sure to continue honoring his late mother, Princess Diana, and has kept her memory alive. One of the ways this has been done is by having Meghan wear Diana's jewelry collection.

The People's Princess passed away in 1997 at age 36 from a Paris car accident. She left her significant jewelry collection to Harry and his older brother, Prince William, to be worn by their spouses.

Diana decreed the items to her sons in a "letter of wishes." In the letter, she allegedly said she wanted her jewelry allocated to William and Harry, but the division would be up to their discretion.

Diana had proudly worn her pieces when she was still alive, and they weren't seen for years until William proposed to his wife, Kate Middleton. The Duke of Cambridge proposed to his girlfriend with his mother's sapphire and diamond engagement ring in 2010.

Reports stated that William and Harry both got to choose items from their late mother's jewelry collection. Harry allegedly chose the sapphire engagement ring before it ended up in his older brother's possession.

William reportedly picked Diana's Cartier watch. Over the years, Meghan has been seen wearing several pieces from her late mother-in-law's collection, including a stunning cocktail ring and gorgeous butterfly earrings.

WHY MEGHAN DIDN'T GET DIANA'S ENGAGEMENT RING - HARRY MADE THE DECISION

Diana's 12-carat sapphire engagement ring sported a band of white gold and 14 solitaire diamonds. According to Diana's former butler, Paul Burrell, Harry chose it because of his childhood memories.

The Duke of Sussex recalled holding his mother's hand as a child and getting hurt by the ring because of how big it was. The ring ended up in William's possession when Harry offered it to him.

Meghan's husband thought it would be great if the jewel would sit on the throne when William became King of England one day. Giving Kate their mother's ring meant it would belong to the future queen one day.

Diana got to choose the jewelry in 1981 when her son's father, Prince Charles, gave it to her with two others to choose from. From the Garrard selection, she picked a Ceylon sapphire stone.

Some people in the Royal Family weren't happy with her choice because they felt it wasn't unique. The ring had featured along with others in Garrard's catalog, meaning anyone who had $60,000 could've purchased it.

Even though Harry gave away that sentimental piece to his brother, he ensured his wife would also get some of his late mother's jewels. Below we look at six gems that belonged to Diana that Meghan has worn.

THE DIAMOND ENGAGEMENT RING

When the Duke of Sussex proposed to Meghan, he used a unique engagement ring. Harry helped design the custom piece, which incorporated three diamonds, with the central stone sourced from Botswana.

The two other stones were taken from Diana's collection. The Duchess of Sussex once described it as "incredible" and said it was created through her husband's "thoughtfulness" with the inclusion of Diana's gems so that she was always a part of them.

THE AQUAMARINE COCKTAIL RING

An aquamarine cocktail ring was the next jewel Meghan got to wear from her later mother-in-law's collection. She wore the piece on the evening of her marriage to the Duke of Sussex.

Viewers spotted the gem as Meghan and Harry drove by in an open-top car to their Frogmore House reception hosted by the duke's father, Prince Charles. Diana would wear the ring with diamonds in the final years of her life.

In 1997, the Princess of Wales was seen wearing it to a preview of Christie's auction of her dresses. Years later, Meghan wore it again on a royal tour of Tonga at a welcome reception with the country's queen and king.

The colorful piece of jewelry was said to have been part of a set. It came with a matching bracelet, but it wasn't clear if the Duchess of Sussex received this other piece or not.

THE BUTTERFLY EARRINGS

The first time Diana wore the sapphire and diamond butterfly earrings was in the 1980s. Harry's wife got to wear them in 2018 during a royal visit to Australia, alongside a beautiful gown by Karen Gee that accentuated them.

The earrings, unfortunately, don't have a precise origin. However, Diana wore them quite frequently during the early years of her marriage to the Prince of Wales.

THE DIAMOND TENNIS BRACELET

As Diana got into the 1990s, her taste in jewelry also matured, and in her last years, she started wearing a tennis bracelet. The piece, which sported a row of diamonds, was seen on her arm at London's 1997 Christie's dress auction.

Her daughter-in-law wore the jewelry several times, including in 2021 during her CBS Oprah Winfrey tell-all interview alongside her husband. Rumors state that some of her engagement ring's diamonds were taken from the bracelet's links.

THE SIMPLE GOLD BRACELET

Harry's wife wore her butterfly earrings with a gold bracelet that once belonged to her mother-in-law during her Australian tour. By early 2022, she had worn it two more times.

Meghan had it on with a sparkling dress during a Cirque du Soleil benefit performance. The second time she paired it with the butterfly earrings again when she launched Smart Works, her clothing line.

THE GOLD CARTIER TANK FRANÇAISE WATCH

In October 2020, Meghan wore the $23,000 gold Cartier Tank Française watch that once belonged to the People's Princess. The timepiece was worn by Diana several times, including in 1997's visit to London's Shri Swaminarayan Mandir Hindu Temple.

At the time, the Duchess of Sussex told Hello Magazine that she planned on passing the watch on to her daughter [Lilibet] one day.

She also wore it again that same year at an engagement at the British Lung Foundation. During World War I, the watch was unveiled in 1917 after being conceived by Louis Cartier while he was living at the Ritz Paris on Place Vendôme.

Cartier sketched the concept in four lines that formed a square, with two extended sides like a stretcher and a strap that linked them. Reports said it was influenced by the first appearance of armored tanks during the war, hence its name.

Meghan had always been a fan of the Tank watch, and she bought herself a two-tone version in 2015 when her former series, "Suits," was chosen for the third season. On the back, she engraved it with the words "To M.M. From M.M."

At the time, the Duchess of Sussex told Hello Magazine that she planned on passing the watch on to her daughter one day. In 2021, she and Harry welcomed their second child and daughter, Lilibet.