AceShowbiz - Romantic British royal Prince William carried his late mother's engagement ring around Africa with him in a rucksack for two weeks before proposing to girlfriend Kate Middleton last month. The couple announced its engagement via Twitter.com on Tuesday, November 16 and then staged a photocall/press conference to show off the diamond-and-sapphire ring and talk about the engagement.

And, during the couple's first official TV interview as bride and groom-to-be, William revealed he nervously carried the gem around Africa before asking Middleton to be his wife in Kenya. He said, "I was carrying it around with me in my rucksack for about three weeks before that and I literally would not let it go; everywhere I went I was keeping hold of it because I knew if this thing disappeared I'd be in a lot of trouble."

"I planned it (proposal) and it went fine. You hear a lot of horror stories about proposing and things going horribly wrong, but it went really, really well and I was really pleased she said yes." And Middleton accepts it's now her responsibility to look after the ring, which William's father Prince Charles placed on his late wife Diana's finger when he asked her to be his wife.

She explained, "I just hope I look after it." The new royal admitted in the interview that she had no idea she would return from Africa with an engagement ring on her finger. She said, "We were out with other friends and things, so I really didn't expect it at all... It was a total shock when it came and I was very excited." The couple will wed next year.