Prince Harry and Meghan Markle issues a ‘targeted’ statement (Image: Getty Images)
Debate surrounding Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s Royal status has reignited following King Charles’s decision to strip his brother Andrew of his titles.
The Duchess of Sussex has recently been accused of capitalising on the couple’s Royal connections through her lifestyle brand. In promotional footage for her Christmas range, Meghan was shown at her desk with a notebook bearing her Royal cipher in gold lettering prominently displayed.
The monogram – featuring the letter M crowned with a coronet – was unveiled prior to her 2018 nuptials to Harry.
She has also introduced a new candle – No 519 – marking their wedding anniversary. “This signature candle is inspired by the ease and joy of a day that holds Meghan’s most cherished memories – her wedding day, May 19th,” the product description stated.
Commercialisation of the Royal Family
Yet this decision has provoked criticism from Royal supporters who question why Harry and Meghan continue leveraging their Royal connections despite their extensive complaints about their period within the institution and their decision to step back from Royal responsibilities more than five years ago, reports the Express US.
Royal author Tom Bower suggests senior royals and Buckingham Palace officials have long harboured concerns about the Sussexes’ intentions to “monetize the monarchy.”
Read more: Princess Beatrice makes surprise appearance as Andrew’s humiliation continues
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‘Spiteful’ statement exposed
He previously disclosed that the deterioration in relations between the Sussexes and Buckingham Palace became apparent when the pair were compelled to abandon their “SussexRoyal” brand ambitions. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex stepped down from representing the Queen on 31 March 2020 and secured financial independence.
Two months earlier, in February 2020, the couple voiced their frustration with the decision-making process and their treatment in comparison to other members of the Royal Family in a statement published on their official website.
Royal biographer Tom Bower described the statement as “spiteful”, claiming it took aim at every single royal, including the late Queen. The Sussexes insisted that the monarch lacked the power to stop them from using the word ‘royal’.
‘Rude to the Queen’
“While there is not any jurisdiction by the monarchy or cabinet office over the use of the word ‘royal’ overseas, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex do not intend to use ‘Sussex Royal’ or any iteration of the word ‘royal’ in any territory (either within the UK or otherwise) when the transition occurs spring 2020,” the statement read.
Mr Bower branded the statement as demonstrating “spiteful fury. It was rude to the Queen.”
Speaking to the Daily Mail, he added that the declaration scarcely concealed the Sussexes’ “simmering resentment” towards other relatives, and featured a thinly-veiled swipe at “minor royals” Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie.
Prince Harry, Meghan Markle and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge before the family’s rift (Image: Chris Jackson, Getty Images)
Forfeited their rights
“While there is precedent for other titled members of the royal family to seek employment outside of the institution, for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, a 12-month review period has been put in place,” it continued.
From March 2020 onwards, the Sussexes stopped being working royals and therefore forfeited the right to use their HRH titles. Tom claimed that “Harry assured his family” they would “never” use their titles for financial gain.
However, shortly after the Sandringham Summit, Harry jetted off to Miami for a JP Morgan event.
The event, hosted by Gayle King, saw Harry fly in on a private jet from Vancouver and reportedly earn an estimated $1 million for sharing his personal struggles. The biographer recalled how Harry revealed he had been in therapy for seven years dealing with the loss of his mother, the late Princess Diana, during his keynote speech.
Furthermore, Harry told the audience he did not “regret” the decision made by the Sussexes to step down as senior royals, as it was done to “protect his family.”
Yet, Tom suggested that palace insiders were left “aghast” following this lucrative appearance.
The British Royal Family standing together on Buckingham Palace’s balcony in 2018 (Image: Chris Jackson, Chris Jackson/Getty Images)
‘A blow to the couple’
This, the Royal expert argued, was “exactly the commercialisation of the monarchy” that Harry had promised to avoid during his Sandringham discussions in January 2020. Harry and Meghan first adopted the Sussex Royal brand in 2019 when they split their household from Prince William and Princess Kate’s, known as Kensington Royal.
Their Instagram page, @sussexroyal, had amassed 11.2 million followers at that time, equalling the fan base of William and Kate’s account.
However, the following year, it was revealed that the Queen and senior officials had decided that the couple would have to give up their title. A source told the Mail, “In many ways, this is inevitable given their decision to step down. But it must surely come as a blow to the couple, as they have invested everything into the Sussex Royal brand. The Queen would have had little choice, however.
“The Sussexes’ original plan – of being half-in, half-out working royals – was never going to work. Obviously, as the Queen has made clear, they are still much-loved members of her family. But if they aren’t carrying out official duties and are now seeking other commercial opportunities, they simply cannot be allowed to market themselves as royals.”
This follows an ‘awkward’ joke by Meghan Markle to Kate Middleton that received an embarrassing response.