The Royals have seen their fair share of controversies in the past: from Princesses Diana to Prince Andrew’s involvement with Jeffery Epstein and most recently the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, Meghan Markle and her husband Prince Harry. Prince Harry has now made several accusations while promoting his upcoming memoir, Spare.
American Actress Meghan Markle married Prince Harry in 2018, and although some speculation remains, she could be the first Black member of the Royal Family in years. Together, the pair has two children, Archie and Lilibet, and they split their time between London and California.
In January of 2020, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex announced on Instagram that they would be stepping away from their royal duties, which sparked numerous rumors within Buckingham Palace. In recent years, Prince Harry had been publicly drifting further from his brother, Prince William, who is now the Prince of Wales. Their father, King Charles,’ unfaithfulness on top of their mother’s young and tragic death, no doubt created tensions between the two early on.
In 2021, Prince Harry and Markle sat down with Oprah in a tell-all interview that highlighted the importance of race within the Royal Family. Markle alleged that there was concern over how dark their son’s skin would be. The two were very careful with their words, and never once disrespected Queen Elizabeth, who died on Sept. 8 of 2022 at the age of 96.
Prince Harry and Markle have always been honest about their positive relationship with the former monarch. According to US Weekly, the Queen once stated “[I] am particularly proud of how Meghan has so quickly become one of the family.”
Prince Harry’s new book, however, puts all of this into question. In a bombshell release, he claimed that he and his brother, William, who is next in line for the throne, got into a physical altercation over his comments made about Markle. In his memoir, “Spare,” the younger prince refers to his brother as “my arch nemesis.”
The youngest son of the King also claims that his mother, Princess Diana might still be alive had she not married his “Pa.” Prince Harry also believed for years his young mother faked her death to get away from the constant berating from the press. He also opens up about his experience with grief, and how he turned to drugs, such as cocaine, to numb his pain.
Syracuse University student and Williston ’22 alum, Adeline Hume, was not shocked by most of Prince Harry’s claims about the Windsor Family.
“[They] aren’t honestly that shocking,” she said. “I feel like everyone knew the Royal Family has been racist.”
Hume believes that the most unpredictable part was Prince Harry breaking his silence.
“It’s more shocking that he broke the culture of not talking about [controversial accusations],” she said.
History shows that the Royals tend to brush things under the carpet without directly addressing them.
Queen Elizabeth’s third child, Prince Andrew, Duke of York, was notably friends with convicted sex offender Jeffery Epstein. Buckingham Palace never addressed the situation but slowly began to remove Prince Andrew from public appearances and in 2019 he was suspended of his Royal duties.
Epstein died on Aug. 10, 2019 after committing suicide in a New York state prison.
Hume is skeptical that Spare will not be overlooked by the palace and could affect their public image.
“I feel like it has kind of brought them down a level,” she said. “It’s not like petty celebrity drama, this is different.”