It was 27 years ago when Prince Edward announced his engagement to longtime girlfriend Sophie Rhys-Jones, a moment that the British press had been waiting on since they started dating in 1993. Duchess Sophie herself admitted to being "stunned" by the proposal—despite their five-year relationship—but Edward recognized that the timing had to be absolutely perfect, as he told the world on January 6, 1999.
"It’s impossible to understand why it has taken me this long, but I don’t think it would have been right before, and I don’t think she would have said yes," Edward told media during his engagement photocall.
To understand his hesitation, one only needs to look at the dramatic royal landscape of the '90s. Prince Charles and Princess Diana separated in 1992 and divorced in 1996, and the "War of the Waleses" was the talk of the tabloids. Meanwhile, Sarah Ferguson and Andrew-Mountbatten Windsor also divorced the same year, and in 1997, Princess Diana died in a tragic car accident.
If Edward, now the Duke of Edinburgh, was reluctant to bring Sophie into such a complicated dynamic, it's no wonder why. But in December 1998, he took his girlfriend on a romantic trip to the Bahamas and popped the question during a "candle-lit dinner," as author Sean Smith detailed in Sophie: Saving the Royal Family.
During their engagement interview, Sophie said that she felt prepared to become a member of the Royal Family—after all, "she was 15 years older than Diana had been," as Smith noted.
"It is slightly nerve-racking in many ways but I am ready for it now," she said. "I'm fully aware of the responsibilities and commitments and I think now I am ready."
For his part, Edward reflected on his siblings' failed relationships and how he hoped his would differ, telling reporters, "I think if anyone is going to get married I hope they think they will get it right. We are the best of friends and we happen to love each other very much, and long may that continue."
