Kate Middleton just wore a special accessory from Prince William during a surprise appearance.
The Prince and Princess of Wales, both 42, released a video message on Aug. 11 in support of Team Great Britain as the 2024 Olympics came to a close. Prince William’s rarely-seen beard immediately generated buzz around the internet, but a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it jewelry moment from the Princess of Wales might also make royal followers swoon.
Kate appears to be wearing a promise ring from William, given to her when they were dating as students at the University of St. Andrews in the early 2000s.
According to the site Dress Like a Duchess, long before Prince William gave Kate his mother’s famous sapphire and diamond engagement ring when he proposed in 2010, he gave Kate a pearl and garnet rose gold promise ring, with pearl symbolizing William’s June birthday and garnet symbolizing Kate’s birthday in January.
According to Dress Like a Duchess, Kate wore this ring in June 2005 on her graduation day from St. Andrews, where she received a degree in art history. Kate “wore the ring on her middle finger during her youth,” according to Dress Like a Duchess, and, though she rarely wears it, has pulled the promise ring out of her jewelry box even after becoming a working royal, wearing it to royal engagements sparingly. She paired the promise ring with a Max Mara gray wrap dress for a visit to Hope House in 2013, for example, and wore it again that same year to Great Tower Scout Camp, according to the site.
The ring signified “commitment and fidelity as well as a pledge for lifelong love and loyalty,” Dress Like a Duchess wrote.
After meeting in 2001 as first-year students at St. Andrews, the two became friends and roommates before eventually endeavoring into a relationship. They had a brief split in 2007 before reconciling that same year and eventually getting engaged three years later. They married on April 29, 2011, and celebrated their thirteenth wedding anniversary earlier this year.
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According to Tatler, the garnet gemstones in the promise ring “are said to represent commitment, and pearls are...
