Forgotten royal wedding rings! Princess Charlene, Zara Tindall & more symbolic bands

Following a century-old British royal tradition, the Princess of Wales’ simple thin band is made from a nugget of gold from the Clogau mines.

When the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge married in 2011, St James’s Palace released a statement reading: “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.”

It sits alongside her iconic sapphire engagement ring which Prince Charles gave to Prince William’s mother, the late Princess Diana. Kate’s husband Prince William has chosen not to wear a wedding ring at all!

To tie in with her diamond engagement ring designed by  Mike Tindall, Zara rocks a platinum wedding band. 

She has also been pictured with a third ring on her left hand. Each ring is said to represent different milestones: an engagement ring is a promise to tie the knot, a wedding band is a physical representation of the marriage and an eternity ring is often given to mark anniversaries or the birth of firstborn children.

On her wedding day on 12 October 2018, Princess Eugenie chose a traditional ring made from pure Welsh gold which now sits under her Padparadscha sapphire engagement ring from Jack Brooksbank.

In line with a British royal family custom started by the Queen Mother in 1923, the Duchess of Sussex wears a wedding band made of Welsh gold.

Kensington Palace confirmed that Meghan’s ring was “fashioned from a piece of Welsh gold, gifted by Her Majesty The Queen.”

The royal, who married Prince Harry in May 2018, wears the simple love token alongside her three-diamond engagement ring, which features two gems from her late mother-in-law’s private collection.

Queen Camilla wears a simple gold band that is dwarfed by the art deco style engagement ring that previously belonged to the Queen Mother, which features a huge square cut diamond flanked by three diamond baguettes.

Duchess Sophie’s wedding band is nestled next to her engagement ring, which consists of a two-carat oval diamond flanked by two heart-shaped gems.

Princess Charlene was presented with a stunning pear-shaped Repossi engagement ring by Prince Albert at their proposal, but during the service chose not to keep it on. The couple exchanged 18-carat white gold platinum rings by Cartier at their glamorous marriage in July 2011.

Queen Letizia of Spain wears her classic 16-baguette diamond engagement ring alongside the gold wedding band she received when she wed Prince Felipe of Asturias in 2004.

Swedish royal Princess Sofia wears a diamond eternity wedding band along with her engagement ring, which her husband Prince Carl Philip designed. The engagement ring features a brilliant-cut centre diamond surrounded by a circle of smaller diamonds lining the dual band.

When Australia-born Queen Mary of Denmark exchanged wedding bands with King Frederik, she is said to have had her late mother’s wedding ring stitched into her dress, close to her heart. 

Her own wedding ring sits next to her eye-catching engagement ring – an emerald-cut diamond nestled between two emerald-cut ruby baguettes.

Princess Madeleine of Sweden chose to keep it classic by adding a simple wedding band next to her gorgeous Asscher-cut diamond engagement ring.

Mother-of-two Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden wears a stunning wedding band featuring small diamonds alongside her gorgeous engagement ring which features a round diamond solitaire in what appears to be a knife-edge setting.