The Part Meghan Markle Has Played In William And Harry's Feud
While the relationship between Prince William, the Duke of Cambridge, and Prince Harry, the Duke of Sussex, has been strained for the last few years, sources have revealed that Harry was unhappy with royal life well before he met and married Meghan Markle, the Duchess of Sussex. According to Tina Brown, author of "The Palace Papers: Inside the House of Windsor — The Truth and Turmoil," things took a turn when Harry left the armed forces in 2015. "[Harry] had all these interests in Africa and conservation, but so did William and Harry always had to play second banana."
"Gradually, that became a major tension between them," Brown added, per Newsweek. "William had this great destiny ahead of him, he knew who he was. For Harry, it's like, 'Who am I going to be — Uncle Andrew? Am I really going there?'"
But things definitely changed when Meghan came into the picture. Harry was reportedly infuriated when his brother suggested he not rush to propose to Meghan, per Express, and William was angered when Harry said that Kate Middleton, the Duchess of Cambridge, could be "friendlier" to Meghan. "Members of their family, said Harry, were not showing her sufficient support, respect, and friendship. Meghan, Harry believed, should be just as appreciated as their mother," wrote Tom Bower, author of "Revenge: Meghan, Harry and the War between the Windsors" (via the Mirror).
And once bullying allegations against Meghan came to light, a new documentary claims the rift between the brothers only widened.
Prince Harry didn't want to hear about the bullying allegations against his wife
Prince Harry, the Duke of Sussex, "slammed the phone down" after Prince William, the Duke of Cambridge, confronted him with proof that Meghan Markle, the Duchess of Sussex, bullied members of the royal staff. According to a new French documentary, "Red Line: William and Harry, the Enemy Brothers," Jason Knauf, former communications secretary to Harry and Meghan, wrote an email to William's then-private secretary with concerns over Meghan's behavior.
"I am very concerned that the duchess had been bullying and harassing two personal assistants, to the extent that she provoked their resignation during the course of the last year," the email read, per the Daily Mail.
When William called Harry about the allegations, the Duke of Sussex hung up on his brother. William then "jumped into a car" to speak to his brother face-to-face. The documentary also claims that former members of Harry and Meghan's household have started a group — the Sussex Survivors' Club — and "some of them still remain traumatized."
The confrontation undoubtedly widened the rift between the two royals, and William and Harry remain estranged. But there is some hope, with a source saying that Queen Elizabeth could use her constitutional powers to order her grandsons to work together when Harry visits the U.K. in September.