They’ve quit! Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan make shock announcement
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have shocked royal fans by announcing that they are resigning as “senior members of the Royal Family”.
The decision, which was announced on Wednesday night, may come as no surprise to those who have been following the pair closely as they’ve made it clear that they are struggling under the intense public scrutiny that comes with being a member of the British Royal Family.
The pair had a six week break over Christmas where they travelled to Canada and it’s understood that arrangements are being made to allow them to live there for significant portions of the year.
The Sussex family made a statement on their Instagram, saying that the decision came out of “months of reflection and internal discussion”.
“We have chosen to make a transition this year in starting to carve out a progressive new role within this institution,” it read.
“We intend to step back as ‘senior’ members of the Royal Family and work to become financially independent, while continuing to fully support Her Majesty The Queen.
“It is with your encouragement, particularly over the last few years, that we feel prepared to make this adjustment.”
The couple also explained that they will be dividing their time between Britain and North America.
“We now plan to balance our time between the United Kingdom and North America, continuing to honour our duty to The Queen, the Commonwealth, and our patronages,” the couple explained.
“This geographic balance will enable us to raise our son with an appreciation for the royal tradition into which he was born, while also providing our family with the space to focus on the next chapter, including the launch of our new charitable entity.
“We look forward to sharing the full details of this exciting next step in due course, as we continue to collaborate with Her Majesty The Queen, The Prince of Wales, The Duke of Cambridge and all relevant parties. Until then, please accept our deepest thanks for your continued support.”
The Sussex family have had a particularly trying year after endless negative press, but it appears that not all is well behind closed doors after a tense statement from Buckingham Palace.
Hours after the Sussex announcement went viral, Buckingham Palace released a two-line statement.
“Discussions with the Duke and Duchess of Sussex are at an early stage. We understand their desire to take a different approach, but these are complicated issues that will take time to work through.”
Former palace press secretary Dickie Arbiter said that the move was “unprecedented”.
“Harry was an absolute bonus to the royal family. He had a tremendous attitude to his work. He brought a lot of joy to a lot of people,” Mr Arbiter said, according to news.com.au.
“It is a breakdown in the royal family. Something has gone wrong.”
According to BBC royal reporter Jonny Dymond, it’s understood that “no other member of the royal family was consulted” before the Sussexes released their personal statement, and the Palace is “disappointed”.
Royal expert Camilla Tominey spoke to the Today show that the Palace would have had no idea about what was happening with the Sussex’s.
“It is true to say that the Queen and the palace had no idea this was coming which then explains the statement which is pretty hastily written, kind of one sentence line and that, for me, smacks of a kind of instant PR reaction — ‘we better get something out but we haven’t got anything pre-prepared’,” she said.
“What’s even more interesting about that statement in saying it is in the ‘early stages’, clearly not according to the Sussex's who have already remodelled and written reams of copy for their new website talking about their relationship with the media and how they want to change it, how they want to change the rules around funding, how they want to change the way they do their charitable work.
“Well, that smacks of something that has been several weeks in the making.”