Tag: Prince Harry

Meghan Left ‘Unprotected’ By British Royal Family – Leaked Court Papers

(FILES) In this file photo taken on April 25, 2018 US fiancée of Britain’s Prince Harry, Meghan Markle, talks with Britain’s Prince William, Duke of Cambridge (L) as she arrives to attend a service of commemoration and thanksgiving to mark Anzac Day in Westminster Abbey in London. Thomas Markle, who has rocked Britain’s royal family with a “will he, won’t he” drama over his attendance at daughter Meghan’s wedding to Prince Harry, is a shy recluse, thrust into the limelight against his wishes. The 73-year-old initially said he was too unwell and embarrassed to walk his daughter down the aisle on Saturday, according to US celebrity news site TMZ, after allegedly staging photos of himself for money and suffering a heart attack amid the ensuing furor.
Adrian DENNIS / AFP

 

 

The Duchess of Sussex has claimed she was left “unprotected” by the royal family from “false and damaging” media articles when she was pregnant, according to leaked documents published on Thursday.

The claims were made in submissions as part of her high-profile case against the Mail on Sunday, website Mail Online and its owner Associated Newspapers.

The duchess, former American actress Meghan Markle, is claiming breach of privacy, data protection rights and copyright over the publication of extracts of correspondence to her estranged father, Thomas, after her wedding to Prince Harry.

In the papers, she submitted she had become “the subject of a large number of false and damaging articles by the UK tabloid media, specifically by the defendant, which caused tremendous emotional distress and damage to her mental health”.

The “institution” of the monarchy failed to protect her from the accusations and she was “prohibited from defending herself”, they added.

The documents also refer to an article published in People, a US magazine, where five unnamed friends claim they were “rightly concerned for her welfare” following the reports.

The papers, widely cited in the British media on Thursday, add that Markle was not involved with the interview.

They also claim that her May 2018 wedding to Harry, grandson of Queen Elizabeth II, helped generate £1 billion $1.3 billion, 1.1 billion euros) in tourism revenue.

The couple quit frontline royal duties earlier this year and have waged an increasingly bitter war with the media, particularly the tabloid press.

Harry has likened what he said was a “ruthless campaign” against his wife to the treatment of his mother, Diana, Princess of Wales.

She was killed in a high-speed car crash in Paris in August 1997, while being pursued by paparazzi photographers.

The couple now live with their young son, Archie, in California and have set up a non-profit organisation focusing on the promotion of mental health, education, and well-being.

A judge in the case has already struck out parts of the duchess’ claims, including that Associated Newspapers acted “dishonestly and in bad faith” and “deliberately dug up or stirred conflict” between her and her father.

The news group denies wrongdoing, and maintains publication was in the public interest and on freedom of expression grounds.

-AFP

Prince Harry, Meghan To Start Non-profit In US

(FILES) In this file photo taken on January 07, 2020 Britain’s Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex react as they leave after her visit to Canada House in thanks for the warm Canadian hospitality and support they received during their recent stay in Canada, in London. DANIEL LEAL-OLIVAS / POOL / AFP.

 

Britain’s Prince Harry and his wife Meghan Markle are planning to launch a wide-ranging non-profit organisation named Archewell, reports on Tuesday said.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, who formally stepped down as senior members of the British royal family last week, told the Daily Telegraph newspaper they were establishing the organisation in the United States, where they are now based.

The charitable organisation will include emotional support groups, a multimedia educational empire and a wellbeing website among other things.

They said they wanted “to do something of meaning, to do something that matters”.

The couple filed paperwork for their new venture in the US last month, the Telegraph said.

They have delayed releasing full details about it because of the coronavirus pandemic and will make an announcement “when the time is right”, they told the paper.

Their proposals are for “a vast and ambitious array of projects” under the name Archewell to replace their previous “Sussex Royal” brand, it added.

The couple have agreed to relinquish the label and their “Royal Highness” titles as part of the terms agreed for their departure from the frontline of the British monarchy.

The new name is derived from the Greek word Arche, meaning “source of action”, and was reportedly the inspiration behind the name of their 11-month-old son, Archie Mountbatten-Windsor.

The couple relocated to California last month, according to reports, after announcing in January that they intended to quit royal life and “work to become financially independent”.

The decision means they will no longer carry out duties on behalf of Queen Elizabeth II and are giving up their office within the monarchy in Britain.

The move followed reports Meghan was unhappy with life inside the centuries-old institution and both of them had complained about media intrusion.

Their sudden announcement rocked the royal family, appearing to blindside the queen and other senior family members.

AFP

Prince Harry and Meghan Formally Quit Royal Life

(FILES) In this file photo taken on March 05, 2020 Britain’s Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex (L), and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex leave after attending the Endeavour Fund Awards at Mansion House in London. JUSTIN TALLIS / AFP.

 

Prince Harry and his wife Meghan formally step down as senior members of the British royal family on Tuesday, as they start a controversial new life in the United States.

The couple have already relocated to California, according to reports, after announcing in January that they intended to quit royal life and “work to become financially independent”.

The decision means they will no longer carry out duties on behalf of Queen Elizabeth II and are giving up their office within the monarchy in Britain.

It follows reports that Meghan was deeply unhappy with life inside the centuries-old institution and increasing complaints from the couple about media intrusion.

Their shock announcement rocked the royal family, appearing to blindside the queen and other senior family members.

It led the 93-year-old monarch to call an emergency summit with her eldest son and heir Prince Charles, and his two sons Princes William and Harry, to thrash out the terms of their departure.

READ ALSO: Global Lockdown Tightens As Coronavirus Deaths Mount

The family eventually agreed the couple, who have an 11-month-old son Archie, will relinquish their His or Her Royal Highness titles, and no longer use the “Sussex Royal” label.

They currently use the name for their popular Instagram account and website, and had also made dozens of trademark applications with it for various products.

However, they will continue to be known as the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, their official titles, and Harry remains sixth in line to the throne, with no change in the line of succession.

– Dream soured –

Harry and Meghan’s departure — dubbed “Megxit” by the British press — is a far cry from 2018, when they married in a fairytale wedding at Windsor Castle watched around the world.

Meghan, 38, a former TV actress who is of mixed race, was seen as a breath of fresh air for the royal family, which is often characterised as stuffy.

But relations with the media soon soured, with some newspapers accused of peddling offensive racial stereotypes and dishing out unfair criticism.

There were also reports of splits within the family, and a growing rift between Harry and William.

Since revealing their plans, the couple had been living in a luxury mansion on Canada’s Pacific west coast, visiting Britain only briefly this month.

But the pair are said to have relocated to California by private jet earlier this month before the United States closed its northern border because of the coronavirus outbreak.

Meghan grew up in Los Angeles and her mother, Doria Ragland, still lives there. She also has a network of friends and work contacts in the city.

What they do next though is unclear.

“My feeling is that they have become very irrelevant in the grand scheme of what’s going on in the world,” royal biographer Penny Junor told AFP.

Junor said it was now a particularly uncertain time for Harry, “a very special member of the royal family”.

“In America they are nobodies. They are celebrities and celebrities are two a penny,” she added.

However, Junor said the couple had left “the door ajar” to return to the royal fold if the American odyssey does not work out.

– Security bill –

The couple’s initial announcement to quit Britain divided opinion and their move to California comes after Harry’s father was last week diagnosed as having COVID-19.

Prince Charles has now left self-isolation, Clarence House said on Monday.

British royals have been showing solidarity with health workers fighting the outbreak, while the queen released a message saying her family stood ready to play its part in the national effort.

“Harry and Meghan have chosen celebrity over duty,” The Times said in an opinion piece on Monday.

Meanwhile, the couple failed to get a warm welcome from US President Donald Trump, whom Harry recently criticised for his stance on climate change when he received a hoax phone call.

Trump said he was “a great friend and admirer of the Queen and the United Kingdom” but insisted US taxpayers would not pick up their security bill.

“They must pay!” he wrote on Twitter on Sunday.

The president’s warning prompted a rare public response from the couple’s spokeswoman, who said they had “no plans to ask the US government for security resources”.

AFP

 

Meghan To Begin New Life By Narrating Disney Elephant Film

In this file photo taken on January 07, 2020 Britain’s Meghan, Duchess of Sussex reacts as she arrives to visit Canada House, in London, in thanks for the warm Canadian hospitality and support they received during their recent stay in Canada. Prince Harry’s wife Meghan has returned to Canada following the couple’s bombshell announcement that they were

 

Prince Harry’s wife Meghan will make an instant start to life away from Britain’s royal frontline by narrating a new film about a family of African elephants, Disney announced on Thursday.

The documentary will follow the family of elephants as they cross Africa’s Kalahari Desert. Its broadcast date is just three days after she and Harry will officially step down as senior royals.

“Disneynature’s Elephant, an Original Movie narrated by Meghan, The Duchess of Sussex, starts streaming April 3,” the channel said on its Twitter account.

The couple stunned the family in January by announcing their plans to quit the royal frontline and move to North America.

Harry, the youngest son of heir-to-the-throne Prince Charles and the late Diana, Princess of Wales, was heard mentioning former actress Meghan’s voiceover abilities to Disney boss Bob Iger.

READ ALSO: EU To Launch New Mission On Libya Arms Embargo Enforcement

“You know she does voiceovers?” he told Iger at the London premiere of “The Lion King” in July last year. “She’s really interested.”

Iger was heard to reply: “Sure. We’d love to try.”

Both Harry and Meghan are dedicated to environmental causes and are looking to develop their charitable foundation as part of a “progressive new role”.

They will now formally be known as “Harry, The Duke of Sussex” and “Meghan, The Duchess of Sussex”.

AFP

Just Call Me Harry, Prince Says As Royal Exit Looms

Britain’s Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, reacts as he waits to greet a guest during the UK-Africa Investment Summit in London on January 20, 2020. Stefan Rousseau / POOL / AFP

 

Prince Harry asked to be introduced as just “Harry” at an event on Wednesday, kicking off a final round of public engagements before he and wife Meghan step back from their royal duties.

The Duke of Sussex, a grandson of Queen Elizabeth II, will stop using “His Royal Highness” from the end of March when the couple stops being working royals.

But at a conference in Edinburgh for his sustainable tourism project Travalyst, it emerged he was already adopting a more informal approach.

“He’s made it clear that we are all just to call him Harry, so ladies and gentlemen — please give a big, warm Scottish welcome to Harry,” host Ayesha Hazarika said in her introduction.

The 35-year-old prince has faced accusations of hypocrisy for using private planes while advocating action to combat global warming but he insists he mostly travels via commercial flights.

He used his remarks in Edinburgh to warn of the risks of huge increases in tourists at key locations, which he said could cause pollution, overwhelm local communities and drive out wildlife.

As sixth in line to the throne, Harry’s announcement in January that he and his wife wanted to step back from their royal positions rocked the monarchy.

The pair revealed plans to split their time between Britain and Canada, after complaining about media intrusion and expressing a desire to be financially independent.

Harry arrived in Edinburgh by train on Tuesday evening without Meghan or their baby son Archie.

On Friday, he will be in London to meet US rock singer Jon Bon Jovi, who is recording a special song for the prince’s Invictus Game Foundation for military veterans.

They will meet at Abbey Road Studios, where The Beatles recorded most of their albums and where Bon Jovi is also recording his song with a choir made up of wounded veterans and serving personnel.

In a BBC interview this week about the event, the singer quipped that following his exit from frontline royal life, Harry should be known as “the artist formerly known as Prince”.

The musician Prince took this title after eschewing his name in favour of a symbol.

Harry and Meghan will join the queen on March 9 for a Commonwealth Day service at Westminster Abbey, which is expected to be their last official appearance as working royals.

AFP

Harry Back In UK As Exit From Royal Life Looms

Britain’s Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex arrives to attend the UK-Africa Investment Summit in London on January 20, 2020. Ben STANSALL / AFP.

 

Prince Harry was back in Britain on Wednesday for the first of a final round of public appearances before he and his wife Meghan step back from their royal duties.

The Duke of Sussex, who has moved his family to Canada, was pictured arriving in Edinburgh late Tuesday ahead of a meeting of businesses involved in his sustainable tourism project.

On Friday, he will be in London to meet US rock singer Jon Bon Jovi, who is recording a special song for the prince’s Invictus Game Foundation for military veterans.

He and Meghan will then join Queen Elizabeth II on March 9 for a Commonwealth Day service at Westminster Abbey, which is expected to be their last official appearance as working royals.

The prince — the queen’s grandson who is sixth in line to the throne — rocked the monarchy with the bombshell announcement in January that he and his wife wanted to step back from their roles.

They revealed plans to split their time between Britain and Canada, after complaining about media intrusion and expressing a desire to be financially independent.

Last week they announced that although they will retain their “His/Her Royal Highness” titles, they would stop using them when they step down from representing the queen from March 31.

Harry arrived at Edinburgh train station on Tuesday wearing jeans and a baseball cap and carrying a suit bag, ahead of the meeting on Wednesday of the Travalyst partnership of travel firms dedicated to sustainable travel.

The 35-year-old has faced accusations of hypocrisy for using private planes while advocating action to combat global warming, but insists he mostly travels via commercial flights.

The meeting with Bon Jovi on Friday takes place at London’s famed Abbey Road Studios, where The Beatles recorded most of their albums.

In a BBC interview this week about the event, the singer quipped that following his exit from frontline royal life, Harry should be known as “the artist formerly known as Prince”.

The late musician Prince was known as this after eschewing his name in favour of a symbol.

AFP

Prince Harry Rejoins Meghan And Archie In Canada

 

Prince Harry arrived in Canada to rejoin his wife Meghan and son Archie on Monday, British media reported, as the couple start a new life after their shock exit from the royal fold.

The Daily Mail newspaper said he landed at Vancouver International Airport on British Airways flight 85 from London’s Heathrow at about 7 pm local time.

It published a photo of him wearing a blue beanie and jeans with a backpack over his shoulders after slipping out a back staircase, escorted by security.

Sky News published footage of Harry descending the steps of an aircraft.

A waiting minivan on the tarmac took him to a connecting flight to Victoria, where he and his family spent the last two months.

The information could not be confirmed by AFP journalists who had staked out the Vancouver and Victoria airports. A videographer, however, saw two vehicles leaving the Victoria area mansion where the couple had been staying for the past two months.

Britain’s Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex arrives to attend the UK-Africa Investment Summit in London on January 20, 2020. Ben STANSALL / AFP

The Duchess of Sussex was earlier spotted with Archie taking dogs for a walk in the neighbourhood.

She’d also made outings last week to Vancouver, visiting a women’s shelter and a charity that supports girls.

According to local reports, the couple is looking to buy a beachside house in Vancouver, or possibly in Toronto, where Meghan spent several years while acting in the television series “Suits.”

Earlier, Queen Elizabeth II’s grandson, who remains sixth in line to the throne, attended the UK-Africa Investment Summit in London, seems in good spirits as he met the presidents of Malawi and Mozambique and the Moroccan prime minister.

He also had an informal 20-minute private meeting with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who hosted the event.

Harry skipped a summit dinner for visiting African leaders at Buckingham Palace in order not to overshadow his brother William’s hosting of the event, the Daily Mail reported.

He and Meghan are bowing out entirely from representing the British monarchy, in a crisis that has shaken the centuries-old institution.

He said on Sunday night they did not want to quit their royal duties but reluctantly accepted there was “no other option” if they wanted to cut loose from public funding and seek their own income in pursuit of more independent life.

AFP

‘It Brings Me Great Sadness’, Prince Harry Reacts To Royal Split

Britain’s Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, reacts as he waits to greet a guest during the UK-Africa Investment Summit in London on January 20, 2020. Stefan Rousseau / POOL / AFP

 

Britain’s Prince Harry expressed “great sadness” on Sunday at the way he and his wife Meghan had to give up their royal titles as part of a separate settlement with the Queen.

“It brings me great sadness that it has come to this,” Harry said in his first remarks on Saturday’s historic agreement, made during a public address and posted on the couple’s Instagram account.

“Our hope was to continue serving the Queen, the commonwealth, and my military associations, but without public funding. Unfortunately, that wasn’t possible,” he told supporters of his Africa-based charity for youngsters with HIV at an event in London.

The settlement stripped Harry and Meghan of public funding and required them to repay £2.4 million ($3.1 million) of taxpayer’s money spent on renovating their Frogmore Cottage home near Windsor Castle.

Harry was also forced to give up the military titles and patronages he was awarded after serving two tours in Afghanistan with the British Army.

But Harry said he felt “utmost respect” for Queen Elizabeth II.

“It has been our privilege to serve you, and we will continue to lead a life of service.”

“I will always have the utmost respect for my grandmother, my commander in chief, and I am incredibly grateful to her and the rest of my family, for the support they have shown Meghan and I over the last few months.”

He also hinted at some trepidation at starting a new life away from his royal home. He and Meghan will spend some time in Canada before deciding whether to move to the United States or another country.

“We are taking a leap of faith — thank you for giving me the courage to take this next step,” he said.

AFP

Harry, Meghan Begin Life As Ordinary People

Britain’s Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex react as they leave after her visit to Canada House in thanks for the warm Canadian hospitality and support they received during their recent stay in Canada, in London.  DANIEL LEAL-OLIVAS / POOL / AFP

 

Britain’s Prince Harry and his wife Meghan began a new life Sunday as — somewhat — ordinary people with financial worries and security concerns after being stripped of their royal titles and public funding by the Queen.

The settlement announced by Buckingham Palace on Saturday saw the 93-year-old monarch assume her painfully familiar role of managing a family crisis that threatened the very foundations of one of Britain’s oldest institutions.

The “Megxit” mess began when the young couple gave up their font-line family duties and announced plans to chart a “progressive new role” in North America on January 8.

They did so without winning Queen Elizabeth II’s permission or seemingly knowing how it was all going to work out.

A mad rush of royal family meetings and screaming headlines in the tabloid press culminated with a ruling Saturday that The Daily Telegraph called “the hardest Megxit possible”.

‘Absolutely unprecedented’ 

The couple lost their right to be called “his and her royal highness” (HRH) — much as Harry’s late mother Princess Diana did when she divorced Prince Charles in another family drama that upset the Queen in 1996.

They further agreed to repay £2.4 million ($3.1 million) of taxpayer’s money spent on renovating their Frogmore Cottage home near Windsor Castle.

“No royal has ever paid back the money,” former royal press secretary Dickie Arbiter wrote in The Sun on Sunday.

“It is absolutely unprecedented.”

Harry was also stripped of the military titles and patronages he was awarded after serving two tours in Afghanistan with the British Army and rising to the rank of captain.

But Arbiter said it was the loss of the HRH “royal highness” title that really made Palace history.

“Even when Edward VIII abdicated (in 1936) he dropped from being His Majesty The King to HRH the Duke of Windsor,” he said.

Arbiter noted that Princess Diana was not born a royal and had her HRH “obtained through marriage.”

‘The point of life’ 

Few know what Meghan — an American former TV actress with a huge social media following and A-list celebrity friends such as Oprah Winfrey and the Obamas — thinks of the British brouhaha about ancient acronyms.

The 38-year-old frankly admitted on UK television in October that she “really tried to adopt this British sensibility of a stiff upper lip. I tried, I really tried.”

But she admitted sadly: “That’s not the point of life. You’ve got to thrive.”

Harry has also been open about still being haunted by his mother’s death in a 1997 car crash involving a chasing pack of paparazzi.

He and Meghan filed a series of lawsuits against British media outlets in October — a step that predictably outraged the tabloids and renewed debates about the royals’ role in public life.

Harry is expected to join Meghan and their male child Archie on a resort island near the southwestern Canadian city of Vancouver this coming week.

Royal observers think they will spend little time in Britain once — in the restrained words of Buckingham Palace — “this new model” takes effect “in the spring of 2020”.

 ‘Stuck in public’s throats’  

The immediate question facing Harry and Meghan is how they will  make ends meet.

Sky News said Prince Charles will continue paying his son some money from his private income.

Harry has undisclosed millions of pounds in savings and Meghan has enjoyed a lucrative acting career. She is now thinking of starting her own line of health and “wellness” products.

The Sunday Times asked a royal aide if Harry and Meghan will be able to cash in on the “Sussex Royal” brand they trademarked in December.

“That is still one the areas being worked through,” the royal aide told the paper.

“That translates as: ‘The Queen isn’t at all sure’,” The Sunday Times wrote.

Arbiter observed that Diana’s “global appeal” was in no way affected by her losing the HRH tag.

Some deals are likely to involve Hollywood.

Video footage emerged of Harry highlighting Meghan’s interest in doing voiceover work to a Disney boss in December. There has also been some speculation about the couple teaming up with Netflix.

The Palace said the separate issue of who pays for their pricey security detail will have to be resolved by the UK government at a later date.

But royal biography Penny Junor said the idea of the couple in any way profiting from their royal titles really “stuck in the public’s throats”.

“Harry is who he is simply by accident of birth,” said Junor. “If he was able to make squillions of pounds from that it would be wrong.”

AFP

Britain’s Prince Harry And Meghan To Give Up Royal Titles

Britain’s Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, (R) and Meghan Markle, Duchess of Sussex, (L) leave Windsor Castle in Windsor on May 19, 2018 after their wedding to attend an evening reception at Frogmore House. PHOTO: Steve Parsons / POOL / AFP

 

 

Britain’s Prince Harry and his wife Meghan have agreed to give up their royal titles and stop receiving public funds as part of a settlement with the Queen that lets them spend more private time in Canada.

The announcement from Buckingham Palace on Saturday follows more than a week of intense private talks aimed at managing the fallout of the couple’s shock decision to give up front-line royal duties.

The decision means the couple will stop usings the titles “royal highness” as they assume more ordinary lives that will see them spend more time away from both Britain and the royal family.

“Following many months of conversations and more recent discussions, I am pleased that together we have found a constructive and supportive way forward for my grandson and his family,” Queen Elizabeth II said in a statement.

“I recognise the challenges they have experienced as a result of intense scrutiny over the last two years and support their wish for a more independent life.”

Her comments referred to battles with the media that prompted Harry and Meghan — known until now as the Duke and Duchess of Sussex — to sue several newspapers over intrusions into their private lives.

A separate statement attributed to Buckingham Palace said, “the Sussexes will not use their HRH titles as they are no longer working members of the Royal Family”.

HRH stands for Her Royal Highness.

“As agreed in this new arrangement, they understand that they are required to step back from royal duties, including official military appointments. They will no longer receive public funds for royal duties,” the statement said.

The settlement added that the two will also repay £2.4 million ($3.1 million) of taxpayer’s money spent on renovating their Frogmore Cottage home near Windsor Castle.

– ‘Progressive new role’ –

The Palace would not comment on who ends up paying for their security detail in Canada — an issue of intense public debate.

It also failed to mention whether the couple would be allowed to benefit financially from future royalties and franchise fees.

Harry and Meghan are seeking to register the “Sussex Royal” brand as a global trademark for their future enterprises.

The couple are dedicated to environmental causes and are looking to develop their charitable foundation as part of a “progressive new role”.

The queen’s announcement is her second on the royal crisis — dubbed Megxit in honour of Britain’s painful battle over Brexit — since Harry and Meghan’s effective resignation on March 8.

“We have chosen to make a transition this year in starting to carve out a progressive new role within this institution,” the couple said at the time.

“We now plan to balance our time between the United Kingdom and North America.”

Meghan then jetted back to Canada and is now there with their son Archie.

Their announcement caught the royal family by surprise and created a media sensation in both Britain and the wider world.

Their treatment by London’s hard-hitting tabloid press and their personal future — as well as questions about longstanding royal traditions — have turned into daily front-page news.

Media reports said Harry would probably join Meghan and Archie on the west coast of Canada this coming week.

– ‘Abdication’ –

The Queen’s final ruling on her grandson’s future drew immediate comparisons to King Edward VIII’s abdication in 1936.

Edward married the American socialite Wallis Simpson the following year and never returned to Britain.

“Harry is not King (he is sixth in line) but tonight this feels like his and Meghan’s own abdication,” ITV television’s royal editor Chris Ship said on Twitter.

“This isn’t 1936. But it’s still pretty big.”

The BBC’s royal correspondent Nicholas Witchell said Meghan must also decide whether she intends to return and spend time in Britain in order to gain her UK citizenship.

The couple’s future tax status also remains unclear.

“I think they are feeling their way into this as much as anyone else is,” Witchell said.

The couple will now officially be known formally as “Harry, The Duke of Sussex” and “Meghan, The Duchess of Sussex”.

The Palace statement said the new arrangement “will take effect in the Spring of 2020”.

AFP

Harry, Meghan Face Criticism After Royal Crisis Summit

An arrangement of UK daily newspapers photographed as an illustration in London on January 9, 2020, shows front page headlines reporting on the news that Britain’s Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and his wife Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, plan to step back as “senior” members of the Royal Family.  DANIEL LEAL-OLIVAS / AFP

 

Prince Harry and his wife Meghan faced fresh criticism on Tuesday in the wake an emergency royal meeting to discuss their shock announcement to step back from frontline royal duties.

British newspapers raked over Tuesday’s meeting at which Queen Elizabeth II agreed to allow the young couple to split their time between Canada and the UK until a solution was found.

“It means only one thing — Harry and Meghan have won!” royal commentator Philip Dampier wrote in the Daily Express. “They metaphorically held a gun to her head and she has given in.”

The Sun tabloid’s editorial said: “Our Queen’s surrender to the petulant, selfish demands of Harry and Meghan may prove the biggest mistake of her reign.

“This couple have simply raised the bar for self-obsessed, arrogant entitlement.”

The Daily Mirror said the monarch “displayed a selflessness sadly lacking from the way Harry and Meghan have disrespectfully treated her”.

The Daily Telegraph called the decision “The Queen’s reluctant farewell”.

The final decisions on the couple’s future will be thrashed out in the coming days.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, as they are formally known, unilaterally announced last week they were stepping back as senior royals and wanted financial independence from the monarchy.

The pair, who have a baby son, Archie, have hinted in recent months at their unhappiness about life in the public eye and Prime Minister Boris Johnson said he understood their concerns.

“I am a massive fan… of the queen and the royal family as a fantastic asset for our country,” he told BBC television. “I’m absolutely confident that they are going to sort this out.”

‘Complex matters’ 

Queen Elizabeth, 93, summoned her eldest son and heir Prince Charles, and his two sons Princes William and Harry to her Sandringham estate in eastern England for crisis talks on Monday.

Meghan was in Canada after briefly returning to Britain last week.

In a rare personal statement afterwards, the monarch said the discussions were “very constructive” but admitted the Sussexes’ decision was not what she would have wanted.

“My family and I are entirely supportive of Harry and Meghan’s desire to create a new life,” she said.

“Although we would have preferred them to remain full-time working members of the royal family, we respect and understand their wish to live a more independent life as a family while remaining a valued part of my family.”

The queen said the Sussexes made clear they did not want to be reliant on public funds, while a transition period had been agreed in which they will spend time in Canada and Britain.

“These are complex matters for my family to resolve, and there is some more work to be done, but I have asked for final decisions to be reached in the coming days,” the sovereign said.

Racism to blame? 

Harry, 35, is sixth in line to the throne behind 71-year-old Charles, William, 37, and his brother’s three young children.

Meghan, 38, a mixed-race American who had forged her own television acting career, was seen as a breath of fresh air for the royal family when she married Harry at Windsor Castle in May 2018.

But in October last year the couple admitted to struggling with the spotlight following their wedding and Archie’s birth in May 2019.

The couple have lashed out at negative press coverage since their marriage, with Harry claiming British tabloids had mounted a “ruthless” and “malicious” attempt to vilify his wife.

Online and television debate has raged since Wednesday over whether tabloid coverage had been racist towards the duchess.

A YouGov poll suggested that while 46 percent of respondents supported the couple’s decision, 57 percent thought they had treated the queen unfairly in their way of going about it.

 Finding funding 

How the Sussexes will be funded is one of the key issues to resolve. Five percent of the couple’s income comes from public funds.

The rest comes from Charles’ Duchy of Cornwall hereditary private estate. It dates back to 1337 and has officially reported assets worth £1.1 billion ($1.4 billion, 1.3 billion euros).

The British police meets their security costs.

Besides Britain, Queen Elizabeth is the head of state of Canada and 14 other countries.

The Canadian government has yet to decide whether it will assume the security costs when Harry and Meghan are in Canada, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Monday.

Canadian taxpayers have traditionally contributed towards the security costs of royal visits.

AFP

Prince William, Harry Slam ‘False’ Story About Their Relationship

Britain’s Prince William, Duke of Cambridge (R) and Britain’s Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, host a reception to officially open the 2018 Illegal Wildlife Trade Conference at St James’ Palace in London.  Tolga AKMEN / AFP / POOL

 

Princes William and Harry on Monday put on a rare united front to dismiss a “false story” speculating about their relationship, as senior royals meet for talks about the younger brother’s future.

Harry and his wife Meghan caught the institution off guard last week when they announced their intention to step back from frontline royal duties.

The 35-year-old former army officer has previously all but confirmed a rift with his older brother, prompting speculation as to the cause and that it may have influenced his decision to quit.

William and Harry, also known by their formal titles the Duke of Cambridge and Duke of Sussex, issued a rare joint statement to condemn one report, without specifying the publication.

“Despite clear denials, a false story ran in a UK newspaper today speculating about the relationship between The Duke of Sussex and The Duke of Cambridge,” it said.

“For brothers who care so deeply about the issues surrounding mental health, the use of inflammatory language in this way is offensive and potentially harmful.”

The Times cited an unnamed “insider” as saying Harry and Meghan felt they had been “pushed away by what they saw as a bullying attitude from the Duke of Cambridge”.

But it also cautioned: “These claims have been strongly contested by sources close to the Cambridges, as well as some close to Prince Harry.”

AFP