Prince Harry "selflessly" gave up Princess Diana's engagement ring so his brother the Duke of Cambridge could give it to the Duchess of Cambridge, a documentary has claimed.

Prince Williams and Prince Harry

Prince Williams and Prince Harry

Prince Charles allowed his sons to select pieces from their mother's jewellery collection following her death in a car crash in 1997 and it is believed that the sapphire ring went to Harry.

However, Diana's former butler Paul Burrell explained that shortly before Prince William proposed to his now-wife Catherine - previously known as Kate Middleton - Harry offered his older sibling the opportunity to give the duchess their mother's ring.

In the Amazon Prime documentary 'The Diana Story', Paul said: "Harry said to him (William): 'Wouldn't it be fitting if she had mummy's ring?' Then one day that ring will be sat on the throne of England.

"Harry gave up his precious treasure. His one thing he kept from his mother, he gave to his brother. That's selfless, kind and exactly who Diana was."

Harry's kindly gesture meant that he was unable to present the ring to the Duchess of Sussex when he proposed to her in 2017. The 36-year-old royal designed the engagement ring himself using two diamonds that had belonged to Diana alongside a central stone from Botswana, where he and Meghan had been on holiday.

Meghan had applauded the Duke of Sussex for his "thoughtfulness" at the time of the engagement and said it ensured that his mother would always be a part of the couple's story.

The former actress – who was known as Meghan Markle before her marriage to Prince Harry – said: "Everything about Harry's thoughtfulness and the inclusion of Princess Diana's stones and obviously not being able to meet his mum.

"It's so important to me to know that she's a part of this with us."