Prince William Wears a Sentimental Bracelet in South Africa

We usually focus our attention here at The Court Jeweller on some of the world’s most fabulous and expensive pieces of jewelry, but sometimes, there’s nothing more valuable than a sentimental bauble from a loved one. Today, we’ve got a closer look at the sweet bracelet worn recently in South Africa by the Prince of Wales–and the family member who made it just for him.

Prince William is in South Africa this week for the presentation of The Earthshot Prize, a global environmental award that is given to five winners each year for their contributions towards important innovations in the field. As William attended several events in the lead up to Wednesday’s awards ceremony, royal watchers clocked that he was wearing an unusual blue and green bracelet on his right wrist.

He wore the bracelet with both casual clothes and a suit. Here, you’ll spot it on his right wrist during a panel event, Earthshot+, at Portside Tower.

Closer views revealed that the bracelet was made of flat blue and green beads surrounding white and gold beads spelling out the letters PAPA.

Here’s a better look at the message on the bracelet. “Papa” is the name that William’s three children, Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis, call him. Indeed, royal reporters traveling with William on the trip revealed on Tuesday that the bracelet was made for him by Princess Charlotte ahead of the trip.

Family has definitely been at the forefront of William’s mind during the visit. He shared a statement ahead of the trip that emphasized the continent’s important role in his life: “Africa has always held a special place in my heart—as somewhere I found comfort as a teenager, where I proposed to my wife and, most recently, as the founding inspiration behind The Earthshot Prize.”

Nine-year-old Princess Charlotte appears to be a bracelet fan herself. She’s often photographed wearing friendship bracelets made of string and beads, just like so many other girls her age.

The bracelet made by Charlotte for her father looks quite a lot like the traditional friendship bracelets that have seen a resurgence in popularity lately thanks to Taylor Swift and her fans. William, George, and Charlotte got to meet the pop star and attend one of her concerts in London in June, and bracelets were surely made and exchanged ahead of that occasion.

But William certainly isn’t the first royal to wear a beaded friendship bracelet during an official engagement. The queen of royal friendship bracelets is undoubtedly Queen Silvia of Sweden, who can often be seen wearing a colorful beaded bracelet stacked with her watch and more substantial bracelets. The beaded bracelets are sold to raise funds for the World Childhood Foundation, the charity that Silvia created in 1999 to “ensure that all children have a safe and loving childhood, free from violence, exploitation and sexual abuse, in a world where such is not tolerated.”

Queen Silvia’s daughter, Princess Madeleine, also works closely with the foundation, and she can often be seen wearing one of their signature beaded bracelets as well. Above, she wears one of the bracelets with her evening jewels for a fundraising gala supporting the organization in October 2023.