Prince Philip Was Not Pleased When Prince Harry & Meghan Markle Announced They Were Stepping Back From Royal Duties
May 17 2022, Published 2:22 p.m. ET
When Prince Philip heard that Meghan Markle and Prince Harry were moving away to the U.S., he was pretty shocked.
“In 2019, Harry told the Queen that he and Meghan wanted to step back as senior royals, raise funds privately and yet still serve the monarchy — albeit in a limited capacity," author Andrew Morton wrote in the Daily Mail. “The Queen’s initial reaction was that it was almost impossible to be half in and half out of the royal family; it was akin to being ‘slightly’ pregnant. Later, Prince Philip’s indignant response to the couple’s declaration of independence was: ‘What the hell are they playing at?'”
Apparently, the couple thought things would end differently.
"They thought it would force the Royal Family to respond by saying… ‘OK, Harry and Meghan, what do you want? We’re going to give you what you want,'" Tina Brown wrote in her book The Palace Papers.
“The terms of the exit were harsh," Brown noted in an interview. “You know, they didn’t get anything they wanted actually. They didn’t even get to keep the word royal. Harry was no longer allowed to keep any of his military honors, I mean it was frankly lethal what happened."
Recently, Harry, 37, and Meghan, 40, got the chance to sit down with the Queen when they made the trip to the U.K. before heading to the Netherlands.
"While the Sussexes and the Queen have been in regular contact over the phone or virtually, their recent in-person meeting — which was purposefully kept a secret from all palace aides — was Harry’s first chance in a year to truly speak privately with his grandmother without fear of anyone overhearing or wandering in the background of a video call," he said. "The reality is, since the passing of Prince Philip one year ago, the Queen is living by herself."
