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The best royal proposal stories that will melt even the republicans’ hearts

From formal agreements to low-key chicken dinners at home, prepare for some serious romance.
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For you cynics out there who say romance is dead, that couldn’t be farther from the truth for our favourite blue-blooded couples.

Royals may tend to keep things formal when it comes to their day job but when it comes to asking the most romantic question of their lives, there are some pretty good stories.

Did you know that the Queen and Prince Philip were writing love letters to one another for years before they became official? Or that Prince William carried around his late mother’s ring in a backpack for three weeks before getting down on one knee?

Take a step back through time and see how your favourite royals popped the question, whether they were on a romantic holiday, or just enjoying a quiet night at home.

Keep scrolling for the best stories of how royals put a ring on it.

(Image: Getty Images)

Queen and Prince Philip

The Queen and Prince Philip have been married since 1947 but despite the formal requirements, their love was clear to see from the beginning.

Not only did the then Princess Elizabeth and her beau write love letters to one another for years before but Prince Philip proposed with a ring that was crafted using gems from a tiara that belonged to his mother, Princess Alice of Battenberg. Cute!

(Image: Getty Images)

Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer

This one is a bit of an exception but seeing as Prince Charles and Princess Diana’s marriage was far from romantic, you wouldn’t expect a very romantic proposal.

The heir to the throne reportedly popped the question at a private dinner at Buckingham Palace before the then-Lady Diana Spencer went to Australia with a diamond and sapphire engagement ring that now belongs to Duchess Catherine.

(Image: Getty Images)

Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer

While being interviewed for her infamous biography Diana: Her True Story, Diana described the moment to Andrew Morton

“[Charles] said, ‘Will you marry me?’ and I laughed,” Diana said. “I remember thinking, ‘This is a joke,’ and I said, ‘Yeah, OK,’ and laughed. He was deadly serious. He said, ‘You do realise that one day you will be queen?’ And a voice said to me inside, ‘You won’t be queen, but you will have a tough role . . .’ ‘Yes,’ I said, ‘I love you so much, I love you so much.’ He said, ‘Whatever love means.’ . . . and so he ran upstairs and rang his mother.”

(Image: Getty Images)

Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson

The royal family’s best divorced couple Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson announced their engagement in 1986 and while they like to keep things lighthearted, their proposal was like something out of a rom com.

Prince Andrew asked his girlfriend to marry him on his 26th birthday at Scotland’s Floors Castle- the place where they had shared their first kiss. And he chose the ring set with a Burmese ruby to match her red hair, how sweet!

(Image: Getty Images)

Prince Edward and Sophie Rhys-Jones

It was a tropical proposal for the Queen’s youngest son Prince Edward who popped the question to his long-term girlfriend Sophie Rhys-Jones during a Christmas holiday on Windermere Island in the Bahamas in 1998.

And to make matters just a touch cuter, the ring featured two heart-shaped gemstones.

(Image: Getty Images)

Prince Charles and Camilla Parker Bowles

Take two for Prince Charles was unsurprisingly more heartfelt.

The Prince of Wales proposed to Camilla Parker Bowles with a family heirloom art deco style ring that was said to have been given to the Queen Mother in 1926 when the Queen was born. And when asked if Charles got down on one knee, Camilla told a reporter, “Of course!”

(Image: Getty Images)

Mary Donaldson and Crown Prince Frederik

Prince Frederik took his Australian girlfriend Mary Donaldson to Rome to ask for her hand in marriage, and shared details of the proposal in his biography, Frederik – Crown Prince of Denmark.

“I had decided that I’d propose to Mary in Rome and had also organised an engagement ring and made sure that I was able to be alone with her,” he said.

“It just worked perfectly. Not just because I wanted to go down on my knee but I did, it’s the right way to do it. And then I just said, ‘You cannot say no, you must not say no, you’ll have to say yes.’ And then she said yes and it was beautiful and happy. We were happy and just the two of us.”

(Image: Getty Images)

Prince William and Kate Middleton

Prince William asked his girlfriend of 10 years Kate Middleton to be his bride in October 2010 on a trip to Kenya with friends.

Various reports claim the exact location was Rutundu Cabin in the foothills of Mount Kenya and Kate herself described the proposal as “very romantic” and that “there’s a true romantic in there.”

While marriage had been a talking point for a while, William confessed that he kept the ring that formerly belonged to Princess Diana in his backpack for three weeks and wouldn’t let it out of his sight.

(Image: Getty Images)

Zara Phillips and Mike Tindall

Mike Tindall proposed to his royal girlfriend of seven years Zara Phillips as they watched X-Men together at their Gloucestershire home shortly before Christmas in 2010.

Speaking of the proposal, Zara was reportedly shocked but obviously said yes…after she stopped laughing.

(Image: Getty Images)

Crown Princess Victoria and Daniel Westling

Former personal trainer Daniel Westling got down on one knee to his girlfriend Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden in the grounds of Drottningholm Palace.

“It was a lovely sunny day. It was a fantastic atmosphere, I was a little nervous, of course. I was hoping for a yes, but wasn’t completely sure,” he said of the moment. Crown Princess Victoria added: “And I said: YES YES YES YES!”

(Image: Getty Images)

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle

It was just a “standard typical night” for Prince Harry and Meghan Markle at their home of Nottingham Cottage in Kensington Palace when the red-headed royal proposed.

In their official engagement interview, the couple revealed that they were “trying” to roast a chicken when Harry caught Meghan by surprise and went down on one knee. In fact, Harry could barely get the words out with Meghan asking “Can I say yes now?”

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Prince Harry reveals how he propsed to Meghan Markle

(Image: Getty Images)

Prince Carl Philip and Sofia Hellqvist

Prince Carl Philip of Sweden woke up one morning to ask his partner, Sofia Hellqvist, to marry him, but had to wait nervously for her to wake up herself.

“I woke up several times the night before, I do not know if Sofia noticed. I wanted it to be a surprise,” he said.

His bride Princess Sofia, who usually wakes up first, added: “He did manage to surprise me, but I did think he was strangely refreshed that morning.”

(Image: Getty Images)

Princess Eugenie and Jack Brooksbank

Princess Eugenie and Jack Brooksbank became engaged in Nicaragua, Central America, and Eugenie even admitted she cried when her now-husband popped the question

“The lake was so beautiful, it was a special light and I even said ‘this is an incredible moment’ and then he popped the question, which was really surprising even though we had been together seven years. It was the perfect moment because we knew it was going to end up this way.”

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Princess Eugenie on the moment Jack Brooksbank proposed

(Image: Instagram @princesseugenie)

Eugenie proposal location

The royal even shared a photo of the magical spot via her Instagram account on the one year anniversary of their engagement.

(Image: HRH Princess Eugenie)

Princess Beatrice and Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi

Eugenie’s older sister Princess Beatrice and her boyfriend Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi became engaged during a trip to Italy.

The couple attended the princess’s friend Misha Nonoo’s wedding in Rome during the same month but it’s not known if Edo popped the question in the Italian capital or somewhere else.

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