When Prince Harry and Meghan Markle announced their engagement in 2018, the news was met with widespread jubilation – but there was one royal who was far from thrilled, according to royal biographers
When Prince Harry and Meghan Markle announced that they were engaged, Harry’s grandfather Prince Philip delivered a rather startling reaction to the pair’s delightful news.
Following a whirlwind 18 months of romance, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex revealed their engagement on 27 November 2018, sharing the exciting news during an extensive interview where Meghan showcased her dazzling diamond ring. While royal fans and pundits responded with excitement, one person remained distinctly unimpressed by the declaration and offered a warning to Harry ahead of the nuptials: his grandfather Prince Philip.
Royal biographer Andrew Lownie claims Prince Philip reportedly warned his grandson: “One steps out with actresses, one doesn’t marry them.”
The royal authority penned: “The Duke of Edinburgh apparently also chipped in – ‘One steps out with actresses, one doesn’t marry them,’ he is said to have advised his grandson. Idle dinner party gossip, perhaps, although it does sound like a Prince Philip bon mot.”
Despite his alleged concerns, the late Prince Philip was present at the couple’s wedding ceremony with Queen Elizabeth at St George’s Chapel in Windsor on 19 May 2018. Royal biographer Ingrid Seward has similarly disclosed that Philip held little affection for Meghan Markle.
In her book, My Mother and I, it’s revealed that Harry’s grandfather was “one of the very few wary” of the Duchess from the early stages of their relationship. Philip even bestowed a cheeky nickname on Meghan, likening her to Wallis Simpson, reports the Mirror.
The Duchess of Windsor, an American socialite, was the woman for whom King Edward VIII abdicated the throne, leading Philip to dub Meghan “DOW”.
Prince Philip’s reservations about Meghan only intensified after the Sussexes stepped back from their royal duties in 2020 and relocated to California. Ingrid Seward revealed that Harry’s grandfather found it difficult to understand why Meghan wouldn’t emulate his example, given that upon becoming the Duke of Edinburgh, Philip had given up his birth citizenship, his naval career and his surname.
In a 2020 interview with Sky News, the royal expert stated: “I think he’s very, very disappointed because I think he feels he gave up his naval career in order to stand by the Queen and help the monarchy.
“And why can’t Meghan just give up her acting career, support her husband and support the monarchy? He just cannot understand why she couldn’t support Harry and help him rather than wanting to have her voice.” Prince Philip reportedly wasn’t the only one concerned about the speed of Harry and Meghan’s engagement. In his memoir Spare, the Duke of Sussex disclosed that his brother Prince William also had similar doubts and was “nervous” about their union.
In his memoir, Harry penned: “‘It’s too fast’, he’d told me. ‘Too soon’. In fact, he’d actually been pretty discouraging about me even dating Meg.”
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