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Meghan Markle was not the "driving force" behind her and Prince Harry's exit from the royal family to start a new life in the United States, a senior palace aide has stated in a new book.
While many still "blame" Meghan for the couple's royal exit in 2020, seeing them step down from their working royal roles to seek independence in America, this ignores the fact that Harry was the "driving force" behind the change, according to Our King: Charles III: The Man and the Monarch Revealed by veteran royal reporter Robert Jobson.
An advanced extract from the book, due to be released on April 13, revealed that King Charles was "deeply saddened" by the state of relations between himself and his youngest son and that he "wishes he could see more of the Sussexes' two children."
Harry and Meghan announced that they would be stepping down from their working royal roles in 2020 after consultation with Charles, Queen Elizabeth II and Prince William. They eventually settled in California, where in 2021 they spoke about feeling unsupported by the royal family and institution leading to their exit during a bombshell interview with Oprah Winfrey.
Though many commentators and social media users have blamed Meghan for influencing Harry away from Britain, this unfairly diminishes the prince's role in the decision, a palace aide told Jobson.
"'Some blame Meghan Markle for the fallout, ignoring the fact that Harry seems to be the driving force in everything that happened.'" the aide said, per an excerpt of the book published by the Daily Mail. "'There was a point when officials joked Harry was the victim of Stockholm syndrome, and he was Meghan's hostage, but now most just feel Harry has turned his back on everything he has known.'"
Since the couple's move away from the monarchy they have undertaken a number of interviews and multi-million-dollar media deals in which they have aired their grievances with the royal family, aides and the British tabloid media. With these have come calls from high-profile critics such as Piers Morgan for the couple to be stripped of their Duke and Duchess of Sussex titles.
According to Jobson, these calls may have found sympathy in royal circles, with the question of whether to take away Harry and Meghan's titles being "discussed" within palace circles.
"The idea of stripping Harry of his Duke of Sussex title has been discussed at the highest level," the author wrote. "The King is said not to be in favour, but other senior Royals are less indulgent. Ultimately, despite Charles's enduring love for his son, he will come under increasing pressure if Harry continues to attack the monarchy. At that point, the King would have two options: put up with the spreading stain on his reign, or take action to limit its scope."
Other revelations made in the public extracts claim that Kate Middleton told a senior royal that undertaking a walkabout with Harry and Meghan after Queen Elizabeth's death was one of the "hardest things she had ever had to do."
The Sussexes and the Waleses reunited for the first time publicly since Harry and Meghan's 2020 move to the U.S. to view floral tributes left to the late queen in September 2022. Royal watchers voiced hopes that this signaled a turning point in the couples' fractious relationships.
"Sadly, it was all an illusion," Jobson wrote. "As sources close to the Royal Family have confirmed to me. Catherine later admitted to a senior royal that, such was the ill feeling between the two couples, the joint walkabout was one of the hardest things she had ever had to do."
So far, there has been no comment from the royals or spokespeople for Harry and Meghan about the book or its contents.
Newsweek reached out to Buckingham Palace, Kensington Palace and representatives of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle via email for comment.
Our King: Charles III: The Man and the Monarch Revealed by Robert Jobson will be published by John Blake in the United Kingdom on April 13.
James Crawford-Smith is Newsweek's royal reporter based in London. You can find him on Twitter at @jrcrawfordsmith and read his stories on Newsweek's The Royals Facebook page.
Do you have a question about King Charles III, William and Kate, Meghan and Harry, or their family that you would like our experienced royal correspondents to answer? Email royals@newsweek.com. We'd love to hear from you.
About the writer
James Crawford-Smith is a Newsweek Royal Reporter, based in London, U.K. His focus is reporting on the British royal family ... Read more