What the ‘wary’ royals really thought of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s engagement
Things didn't go down well with all the family...
It seems the royal family were always a little hesitant about Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s romance, even in the early days.
The fresh faced couple announced their engagement in an idyllic photo call in November 2017.
The pair looked smitten as can be, boasting beaming smiles and exchanging adoring glances. Of course, Meghan flaunted a sparkling diamond on her ring finger and even rocked a white jacket to reflect their upcoming ceremony.
The royal family’s response to Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s engagement
However, the pair allegedly endured a bumpy response right off the bat regarding their relationship, despite their portrayal of being lucky in love…
“I wanted to do it earlier,” Harry admitted during the Netflix documentary Harry And Meghan. “Because I had to ask permission from my grandmother, I couldn’t do it outside of the UK.”
Harry asked for his grandmother’s blessing to pop the all important question to Meghan after a day spent shooting at Sandringham.
Royal biographer Ingrid Seward revealed in her book My Mother and I: “Neither Charles nor Prince Phillip was present when, in the middle of a windswept Norfolk field, Harry asked his grandmother for permission to marry Meghan.”
Queen Elizabeth II’s reply when Harry asked for her blessing
She continued: “The Queen was picking up dead birds after the final drive with her Labradors. There were no security officers around her, so Harry realised this was his once chance to get his grandmother on her own.”
The Queen’s reply was allegedly cryptic. The long-serving monarch is said to have replied: “Well, then, I suppose I have to say yes.”
Reports claim that after an initial meeting at Royal Lodge in Windsor, Queen Elizabeth II had “originally been pleased that her grandson had at last found a woman to love who appeared to be able to return his intense passions”.
MailOnline explain that Lady Elizabeth, one of the Queen’s closest confidantes, said the monarch had “high hopes for what [Meghan] and Harry might be able to do, especially for the youth of the Commonwealth”.
Prince Philip’s worries about Meghan Markle
In fact, the queen was said to have “continued to champion her,” despite Prince Philip’s reservations.
Ingrid Seward alleged that Philip was “one of the few wary” of Meghan Markle.
The then Duke of Edinburgh allegedly thought Meghan had an “uncanny” similarity to Wallis Simpson – the famous American socialite and double divorcee who King Edward VIII abdicated to marry.
A scandalous moment in history that consequently catapulted Queen Elizabeth II to the forefront of the line of succession.
Prince Philip even nicknamed Meghan DOW after Wallis, the Duchess of Windsor.
Similarities to Wallis Simpson
When Wallis, who had been divorced twice, wed King Edward VIII in 1937, she opted for a pale blue dress, instead of “virginal white”.
Although Meghan had also been wed before, to Hollywood producer Trevor Engelson, she didn’t follow Wallis’ lead.
In fact, she opted for a pure white Givenchy gown and a long trailing veil.
Lady Elizabeth allegedly told royal author Seward that the Queen had remarked that Meghan’s wedding dress was “too white,” likely due to her divorced status.
Ingrid Seward penned: “In the monarch’s view, it was not appropriate for a divorcee getting remarried in church to look quite so flamboyantly virginal.”
Meghan Markle’s choice to wear ‘virginal’ white at her wedding
The Queen also was said to have been unimpressed with Meghan’s decision to wear a veil.
Author Tom Bower claimed Her Majesty “questioned why Meghan needed a veil for the wedding, given it was to be her second marriage.”
Royal author Tina Brown also has her own claims about the royal family’s thoughts on the now Duchess of Sussex.
Brown claims that it was Prince William who was most concerned about Harry’s relationship with Meghan.
Prince William’s concerns about Prince Harry’s marriage to Meghan Markle
In her book The Palace Papers: Inside The House of Windsor, Brown spoke to 120 royal insiders over the course of two years, and claims most of the The Firm approved of Meghan – it was William who harboured the most worries.
According to Brown: “William knew Harry all too well and feared he was heading for trouble. Every time his brother fell in love, it was an eruption of Vesuvius.
“‘You do realise this is the fourth girl you’ve taken to Botswana’, he couldn’t help but remark after Harry’s starry-eyed account of the trip.”
Harry explained William’s reaction to his blossoming romance with Meghan in his memoir, Spare. The royal penned: “It’s too fast, he’d told me. Too soon. In fact, he’d actually been pretty discouraging about my even dating Meg.
“One day, sitting together in his garden, he’d predicted a host of difficulties I could expect if I hooked up with an ‘American actress’, a phrase he always managed to make sound like a ‘convicted felon’.
“Are you sure about her Harold?
“I am, Willy.
“But do you know how difficult it is going to be?
“What do you want me to do? Fall out of love with her?”
Prince Harry’s friends slammed ‘woke’ Meghan
According to Battle of the Brothers by historian Robert Lacey, William even turned to Princess Diana’s brother Earl Charles Spencer for support, in a desperate effort to convince Harry to slow down his relationship with Meghan.
“For his part, William was worried that his brother was going too fast in his courtship and he didn’t shrink from saying so when Harry started talking about getting hitched.
“William couldn’t understand how Harry could contemplate marrying this still unknown and untested quantity less than two years after their first meeting.”
Unfortunately, William’s last-ditch attempt to slow Harry down only resulted in pushing his brother away.
Harry was also said to have fallen out with his childhood friend Tom Inskip at the time. Inskip had also warned the prince about Meghan, urging him to take it slow.
According to the book Finding Freedom, about Harry and Meghan’s dip out of the royal fold, Inskip also warned Harry that he was moving too fast.
He allegedly advised Harry and Meghan to live together before “doing anything more serious”.
A source close to Sussexes told the book’s authors (Carolyn Durand and Omid Scobie) that despite this advice coming “from a good place,” Harry “didn’t totally see it that way”.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s love story
Harry’s friends were also said to have dubbed the prince “nuts” for dating “woke” Meghan.
Despite opposition, it seems Harry and Meghan’s love story has been (albeit unconventional) a successful love story.
In their loved-up engagement interview with BBC journalist Mishal Husain, Harry gushed: “The fact that I fell in love with Meghan so incredibly quickly was a sort of confirmation to me that everything, all the stars were aligned.”
Read more: Prince Harry ‘heartbroken’ as he steps down from Sentebale charity after ‘unthinkable’ controversy
So, what do you think? Do you agree with the concerns about Meghan Markle and Prince Harry’s romance? Leave us a comment on our Facebook page @RoyalInsiderOfficial.
