During the Invictus Games last month, Meghan Markle embarked on a visit to the Fisher House Foundation in Los Angeles – a non-profit organisation that builds comfort homes for members of the military, veterans and their families to stay while a loved one is in hospital.
In a video that was screened this week in a series of Invictus webinars, Meghan can be seen talking to military veterans and their families about the power of recovery.
Wearing a buttoned down blue and white striped shirt and black skirt, Meghan accessorised with a sentimental piece of jewellery that previously belonged to the late Princess Diana – her Cartier Tank Francaise Watch.
Fine jewellery experts at UK retailer Steven Stone have revealed everything there is to know about the timepiece – from its history to its value.
Diana was a lover of watches. When her marriage to Prince Charles began to unravel, she stopped wearing the Patek Philippe gold watch that Prince Charles had given to her on her 20th birthday. In its place, she frequently wore a classic Cartier Tank Louis on a black alligator strap, which was a gift from her father, Earl Edward John Spencer on her 21st birthday.
The Cartier Tank Louis wasn’t the only Tank watch that Princess Diana owned. On more formal occasions, she wore a gold Cartier Tank Française watch. Diana was spotted with the classic timepiece during a number of events – including a visit to London’s Shri Swaminarayan Mandir Hindu Temple in 1997 and an engagement at the British Lung Foundation that same year.
Prince Harry gifted his Mother’s elegant watch to his wife, Meghan, who also appears to place significance on it – she was first seen wearing the accessory at a Fortune magazine summit back in 2022. In 2021, she wore it in a rare portrait of the couple that was released ahead of the couples episode of ‘Time100 Talks’.
More recently, she wore the watch alongside Princess Diana’s £140,000 Cartier diamond tennis bracelet during a hike in California, which coincided with King Charles III’s coronation.
Though did you know that the watch wasn’t actually left to Prince Harry? After the Princess passed away, her private jewellery was divided between her two sons and the watch was given to Prince William, while Harry got her engagement ring – the brothers eventually swapped.
Worth £17,800 ($23,000) at the time, the watch is now likely worth a lot more given its history.
“Meghan Markle frequently pays tribute to Princess Diana through her jewellery – most notably with the late Princess’ striking aquamarine ring, which the Duchess wore on her wedding day. Back in May, Meghan wore £150,000 worth of Princess Diana’s jewels on a hike in California, which coincided with King Charles III’s coronation.”
During a recently released video that sees Meghan interacting with families who have benefitted from the Fisher House Foundation in Los Angeles, she can be seen wearing Princess Diana’s Cartier Tan Francasie watch.
The late Princess of Wales was spotted wearing the elegant yellow gold watch at a number of formal occasions, all around the same time as or after her divorce from the then Prince Charles, which suggests that it heralded a new era of independence for her.”
Worth £17,800 at the time, the significant timepiece is now likely worth a lot more given its history.”
zack stone, managing director, steven stone
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