E-Paper
Meghan Markle appears to violate major agreement with royal family with this move
Meghan Markle seemed to violate an agreement with the royal family even though she promised not to when she stepped back from royal duties.
Meghan Markle appeared to violate an agreement with the royal family by using her HRH title. She had reportedly agreed not to do so when she stepped back from royal duties. The revelation came to light during an interview with Meghan’s friend Jamie Kern Lima, founder of IT Cosmetics, in a podcast on YouTube.
In the aftermath of the success of Meghan’s lifestyle brand ‘As Ever,’ Lima revealed during the podcast that the Duchess of Sussex sent her a gift box of food, accompanied by a thank-you card, about a year back. "I had a very full house, and all of a sudden I get word that you dropped off this gift basket with ice creams, homemade strawberry sauce to put on top of the ice cream just to see if that helps lighten my load," the cosmetics boss said.
A picture of the gift showed the card with the HRH title. A note with the present, printed on monogrammed paper, read, "With the compliments of HRH The Duchess of Sussex." Previously, Meghan and Prince Harry agreed they would not use their HRH titles amid concerns about the couple monetising their royal connections.
Meghan recalled that she personally delivered the basket to Lima after moving to California. "I knew when I dropped off that strawberry it wasn't even preserves as it didn't have time to set I just made it quick because we had a lot of strawberries at the time," she said during the interview.
"I just knew that even if we never talked about it, that it would brighten your day,” she added.
The agreement
When Harry and Meghan left the royal family, they retained their titles. However, they said they would not use them.
A statement released by Buckingham Palace in January 2020 said, according to GB News, "The Sussexes will not use their HRH titles as they are no longer working members of the Royal family."
Harry and Meghan’s titles were put into abeyance by this agreement. The note on the gift would be in direct contrast to this arrangement.
An insider close to the Sussexes defended their move, claiming they had agreed not to use the titles for commercial purposes. This was a personal gift, the source added, as reported by GB News.
Royal author Ingrid Seward blasted the move, telling The Sun, "I think if her late grandmother-in-law, Queen Elizabeth, were still around, she would be highly offended, as she was very sensitive about that.”
"She wouldn't think it was the correct form, and remember she removed the HRH titles from both Diana and Sarah Ferguson,” Seward added. “The Queen didn't remove HRH but told them not to use it. But she isn't here anymore, so maybe Harry and Meghan think they can get away with it.”
