Two Historical Engagement Rings

Below are two historical people who got rings from their equally historical lovers.

Joséphine de Beauharnais

Back in the late 1790s, Napoleon Bonaparte gave Empress Joséphine a ring. Despite getting a demotion from the rank of General, he spent each cent he could spare on a stunning ring for his beloved. It was a pear-shaped diamond ring that also featured a pear-shaped sapphire, set in a yellow gold band in “toi et moi” fashion. At a 2013 auction, it fetched nearly $950,000, which was said to be fifty times its actual appraised value.

Lady Diana Spencer

The Lady Diana Spencer-Prince Charles engagement was a well-publicized event. It is no wonder it featured a showstopper of an engagement ring, too. The young soon-to-be-princess was actually given a selection of engagement rings to choose from. She chose a blue sapphire, set in an 18 karat white gold band and encircled by diamonds.

The belongings of Princess Diana were left to her sons, Prince William and Prince Harry. William, the Duke of Cambridge, used the engagement ring of Princess Diana to propose to Kate Middleton, his future wife and Duchess of Cambridge, in 2010.