Harry and Meghan Markle’s decision to leave the Royal Family back in January has been pushed back into the spotlight after extracts from ‘Finding Freedom’ were released. The new biography, written by royal reporters Omid Scobie and Carolyn Durand, suggested that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex were frustrated by the public roles they were given by the Palace. The authors claimed the couple were annoyed at having to take “a back seat” to other family members — such as Prince William.
They alleged: “As their popularity had grown, so did Harry and Meghan’s difficulty in understanding why so few inside the palace were looking out for their interests.”
This suggestion surprised some royal watchers, as hierarchy is a core principle within the Firm and Harry is sixth-in-line to the throne, behind Charles, William, and William’s children.
However, royal author Nigel Cawthorne recently challenged this view in an interview with Express.co.uk, by saying Harry’s frustration may have revealed difficulties with his older brother more than with the structure of the royal institution.
He said: “Rather than being offered this role or that role, the difficulty has more to do with the dynamic between two siblings who are told in their youth that they need to support each other.
“In their daily life at the court, no matter what they did, they would always be seen as the junior family.
“Rather than get on his brother’s nerves, as they might well have if he had stayed, he [Harry] was ready to try to carve out something new.”
Harry and Meghan have since relocated to LA since leaving the royal frontline.
They have signed up to the same high-profile public speaking agency as Barack and Michelle Obama, and are in the process of launching their own charitable venture, Archewell.
The Sussexes and the authors deny collaborating for ‘Finding Freedom’ and claim the reporters wrote the account based on their own experiences as official members of the royal press corps.
‘Finding Freedom’ is set to be released on August 11.
