Meghan Markle ditches the £250k engagement ring she had blinged-up for a simple gold band on Africa tour in an effort to be ‘low key’
MEGHAN Markle has ditched her beautiful £250,000 engagement ring for the royal tour to Southern Africa.
The Duchess of Sussex, 38, has been pictured without the dazzling three-stone sparkler, having swapped it for a much simpler version.
The new ring features a plain gold band and a small but pretty turquoise stone, and is being worn alongside her usual Welsh gold wedding band.
A royal aide said the decision to wear a less flashy ring was because the duchess wanted to be “low key”.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are currently undertaking a 10-day tour of southern Africa and will do a whopping 35 engagements during their stay.
This is a far cry from Meghan’s look at Trooping the Colour in June this year, where she showed off three pretty rings for the occasion.
In addition to her gold wedding band and glittery engagement ring, Meghan debuted a new gold band with diamonds round the exterior.
The jewellery addition fuelled speculation that she was gifted the third ring by her husband as a "push present" - a popular phenomenon where dads mark the occasion of their partner's birth.
Meghan’s large engagement ring has a particular poignant meaning, as two of the diamond stones featured were from Princess Diana’s collection.
The centrepiece is a large stone from Botswana, which is where the pair went for a romantic African holiday on her 36th birthday ahead of their engagement.
Prince Harry designed the ring himself, but fans spotted Meghan has blinged it up this year.
The stunning sparkler originally had a thick gold band which beautifully offset the row of three diamonds.
However, Duchess reset her ring with a much thinner, diamond-studded micro-pave gold band.
Speaking to Fabulous Digital, editor-in-chief of Majesty Magazine, Ingrid Seward, explained she "found it odd" that the Duchess of Sussex, 37, would change her engagement ring.
"I find it a bit odd Meghan would want to alter a ring that her husband had especially designed for her," she said.
"A royal engagement ring is a piece of history not a bit of jewellery to be updated when it looks old fashioned."
Today the couple are visiting Waves for Change - a charity that works with surfers to provide mental health support for youngsters.
Meghan has debuted a casual look wearing a denim jacket, skinny jeans and a flats.
And after a number of public appearances with Harry, mum Meghan is expected to stay in Johannesburg with Archie while Harry goes to Botswana, Angola and Malawi.
As part of the tour, Harry will also meet a British military unit who are working alongside the local rangers to help combat the threat of the illegal wildlife trade in Malawi.
The new dad will also make a "significant and poignant" trip to Angola to see his mum Diana's legacy, who helped raise awareness for the threat posed by landmines in 1997.
The palace said while Harry is eager to "support young people across Africa to reach their potential", wife Meghan will also be "working with organisations to promote women's education, health, entrepreneurship and leadership".
The couple are also expected to meet Archbishop Desmond Tutu and Mrs Tutu at their legacy foundation.
They will also speak with Grace Machel, the widow of the late President Nelson Mandela, before the tour finishes on October 2.
MORE ON THE ROYAL FAMILY
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And we showed you Meghan's tribute to Vogue photographer Peter Lindbergh following his death at 74.