Earlier this year, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle gave a bombshell interview to Oprah Winfrey. In that interview, they aired the dirty laundry of their battles with other members of the Royal Family. This included allegations of racism, of cutting off financial support, and of ignoring Meghan’s pleas for help when she was feeling suicidal.
That interview, of course, came after Harry and Meghan stepped down from their royal responsibilities and left the country. But this very public clash between Harry, Meghan, and the rest of the family came after tensions built up since the couple began dating in 2016.
We know exactly how Harry and Meghan feel about the royals. But how do the royals feel about Harry and Meghan? Here is everything the royals have said about Harry and Meghan, in their own words.
Prince William addresses claims of royal racism
Allegedly, Prince William has been in conflict with his brother Harry since he began dating Meghan Markle. As an American divorcee and an actress, Markle wasn’t the usual marriage material for British royalty. William reportedly warned Harry that he was moving too fast with Meghan, especially since they got engaged after less than a year of dating. And as Cosmopolitan reports, Harry allegedly responded by saying, “You’re trying to wreck this relationship before it’s even started.”
It’s no surprise, then, that William took the firmest stance against the claims Harry and Meghan made. In the interview with Oprah, Meghan claimed that an unnamed member of the Royal Family expressed “concerns and conversations about how dark [Archie’s] skin might be when he’s born.”
When asked about this claim directly in March, William bluntly told BBC reporters, “We’re very much not a racist family.”
RELATED: Photos of Meghan Markle She Never Wanted Us to See
Queen Elizabeth says Harry and Meghan are ‘much loved’
After the interview with Oprah took place, Harry clarified that his grandparents were not part of these alleged racist conversations. And during the interview, he said that he has a very good relationship with Queen Elizabeth and they were probably closer after he stepped down and left the country than before. “I’ve spoken more to my grandmother in the last year than I have for many, many years,” he said.
Perhaps because of that close relationship, Elizabeth’s only comment about Harry and Meghan’s interview contained a mixture of sadness and support. But she assured the public that the allegations of racism would be addressed. The Queen responded to the interview via a Buckingham Palace statement:
“The whole family is saddened to learn the full extent of how challenging the last few years have been for Harry and Meghan.
“The issues raised, particularly that of race, are concerning. While some recollections may vary, they are taken very seriously and will be addressed by the family privately.
“Harry, Meghan, and Archie will always be much loved family members.”
Prince Charles plays damage control about cutting Harry off
Obviously, Meghan’s claims about royal racism raised the most eyebrows around the world. But another major allegation during the interview came from Harry. He claimed that his father Prince Charles financially cut him off in the first quarter of 2020, forcing him to pay out of pocket for security to protect his wife Meghan and son Archie.
Via a spokesperson, Prince Charles took to BBC to offer some context regarding Harry’s claim.
“As we’ll all remember in January 2020 when the duke and duchess announced that they were going to move away from the working royal family, the duke said that they would work towards becoming financially independent. The Prince of Wales allocated a substantial sum to support them with this transition. That funding ceased in the summer of last year. The couple are now financially independent.”
So, why did Harry say he was cut off in the first quarter of 2020 while Charles says he was cut off in the summer of 2020?
Turns out, there is no discrepancy. According to Harry and Meghan’s spokesperson speaking to the BBC, Harry was referring to the first quarter of the fiscal reporting period, which goes from April to the start of July.
Harry and Meghan have since signed multimillion-pound deals with Netflix and Spotify in order to pay for their own security. Harry also said in the Oprah interview that he and Meghan would not have been able to step down as working royals and transition to a new life without the financial support left to him by his late mother Princess Diana, £7M at the time of her death.
RELATED: How Meghan Markle Really Feels About Each of Her Royal In-Laws
Princess Anne says there are ‘downsides to having titles’
Princess Anne is Prince Charles’ sister and Harry’s aunt. And while she didn’t address “Megxit” directly, she did make some interesting comments about royal titles one month after Harry and Meghan stepped down and gave up their “His/Her Royal Highness” titles.
In an interview with Vanity Fair in April 2020, she said that she choose not to give her own children royal titles in order to give them “ordinary childhoods.”
“I think it was probably easier for them, and I think most people would argue that there are downsides to having titles,” she said. “So I think that was probably the right thing to do.”
Of all people, Anne understands the importance of royals putting their children first and offering them the most normal life possible.
Prince Edward stays out of it
Prince Edward is Prince Charles’ brother and Prince Harry’s uncle. And it’s quite possible he is a fan of the classic movie War Games. Why? Because when it comes to scandals involving Harry and Meghan, he has learned that the only winning move is not to play!
At times, he was even cheeky about staying out of the matter. For example, when The Telegraph asked him about Harry and Meghan’s interview with Oprah in June 2021, he responded with “Oprah who?” His wife Sophie, Countess of Wessex also played coy, saying, “Yes, what interview?”
But in an interview with the BBC the same month, Edward explained why he refuses to comment on Harry and Meghan. “I stay way out of it. It’s much the safest place to be.”
Still, he does seem sympathetic to the major pressures that come from being a member of the royal family. “There are all sorts of issues and circumstances there but we’ve all been through there. We’ve all had the same spotlight shown on our lives,” he said.
While Edward said little else of Harry or Meghan, he did declare that the birth of their daughter Lilibet Diana was “fantastic news” and wished the couple “all happiness” in their future endeavors.
RELATED: What Meghan Markle Was Like Before Becoming Royalty
Harry reveals what Princess Diana would think
The last year and a half have made one thing clear: Harry and Meghan don’t worry too much about what current members of the Royal Family have to say about them. But there is one royal who will always matter to them, and that is the late, great Princess Diana.
On July 1, Harry even returned to the U.K. despite his family squabbles in order to celebrate the 60th anniversary of Diana’s birth and unveil a statue he and William commissioned in her honor.
And to hear Harry tell it, his beloved mother would have supported his decision to step down and move his family out of the country. As CBS News reports, he mentioned in the Oprah interview, “When you asked me what my mom would think of this, I think she saw it coming. And I felt her presence throughout this whole process.” More pointedly, he said that Diana would be both “very angry” and “very sad” at how he and Meghan were treated by the rest of the family.
Later, in an appearance on his Apple TV+ mental health series The Me You Can’t See, Harry speculated that he is now living the life his mother always wanted for herself. As Insider reports, he said, “I have no doubt that my mum would be incredibly proud of me. I’m living the life that she wanted to live for herself, living the life that she wanted us to be able to live.”
And that’s the only royal endorsement Harry or Meghan will ever need!