Prince Harry wanted to praise his wife Meghan Marke in “Spare,” but he didn’t do her any favors when he said she “gave it all away.” Because the fact that actresses and royals deal with gifts differently caused a lot of resentment behind the palace walls.
London – It’s just a side note in Prince Harry (38) controversial memoir “Spare”. But what one quickly overlooks in the book had enormous consequences. In a few words, there is an explanation of how the tangible allegations of bullying against Meghan Markle (41) came about, why palace employees finally quit and there was an external investigation of the allegations, the results of which Queen Elizabeth II (96, † 2022) apparently preferred to keep to himself.
Meghan Markle’s Lifestyle Blog The Tig: “Trawling Luxury Giveaways”
For context, let’s go back to 2014 when Suits actress Meghan Markle started her lifestyle blog, The Tig. Royal expert Tina Brown wrote in the Palace Papers: “The promotion of cosmetics, travel destinations, restaurants and self-care products turned The Tig into a trawl for luxury giveaways. she [Meghan] earned a reputation among luxury brand marketers for being keen on receiving designer gift bags.”
Meghan had to shut down “The Tig” as Royal, but because the influencer whirlwind was already in motion, Meghan’s wedding to Prince Harry in May 2018 did not change the apparently juicy free gifts. On the contrary: the rain of gifts increased. Prince Harry writes in “Spare” about her time at the palace: “You [Meghan] shared all the gifts she received—clothes, perfume, and makeup—with all the women in the office.” super nice, right? If it weren’t for the rules that set out what’s acceptable and what’s not for active Windsors. A comment on news.com.au suggests things got tricky for Meghan from then on.
Official guidelines for royals on gifts – and the possible connection with the bullying allegations against Meghan
The guidelines state: “Gifts offered by commercial establishments in the UK should normally be refused” unless they are for “a royal wedding or other special personal occasion”.
In late 2018, news broke that Meghan’s assistant Melissa Toubati had quit, and reporter Valentine Low wrote in his 2021 book, The Courtiers: “Palace sources have said the falling out between Meghan and Toubati revolved around the free gifts some companies are offering would send Meghan.”
In sources at The Sun talks about “boxes of designer clothes for Meghan being sent to Kensington Palace after she was revealed as Harry’s girlfriend”.
Low continued: “Toubati appears to have scrupulously adhered to the house rule that members of the royal family cannot accept gifts from commercial organizations. Her actions didn’t sit well with Meghan.”
It is customary in the royal family to return gifts
It’s reportedly customary for the royal family to return gifts – and they pay for their own clothing both on and off duty. Other reports indicate that Meghan’s luxurious generosity was a point of friction behind the scenes. A source reports in The Sun: “As an actress, it was perfectly fine to accept freebies from fashion chains and designer labels. But Meghan needed to be told that being a member of the royal family is not okay.”
Prince Harry should know, but he wanted to show his adored wife as a radiant do-gooder with his “Spare” subordinate clause. Nevertheless, one has to give Meghan credit for the fact that the clash of cultures was not the only reason for the hustle and bustle, but that there were also scandals in the palace about jewelry gifts, racehorses and royal participation in advertising campaigns. Nevertheless, one can imagine that the interests of Princess Kate and Co. on the one hand and Meghan’s concerns on the other hand collided. Against this background, it is not surprising that the Favoring a designer is said to have set the course early on between the Princess of Wales and the Duchess of Sussex. Sources used: royals.uk, news.com.au, thesun,co.uk
