The Reason Prince Harry Was Warned About Meghan Markle

Meghan Markle caused quite a stir within the ranks of the British royal family the moment she started dating Prince Harry. From being a biracial, divorced American actress to not wearing the right clothes or behaving in the correct manner, no matter what she did, Markle just seemed to rub the royals the wrong way. The opinions of his extended family didn't seem to faze Prince Harry, who married Markle and had a child with her before absconding to Los Angeles to start a new life in what was soon cleverly dubbed "Megxit."

The couple's decision to step down from their official duties rocked the family, as well as the press on both sides of the Atlantic, to its very core. Rumors continue to circulate about what transpired to make it happen and why.  However, it now seems that if certain people had had their way, the entire ordeal could have been avoided — because Prince Harry wouldn't have married Markle in the first place.

According to Express, the tell-all book Royals at War claims Prince William asked his brother, "Is she the right one?" almost immediately after he started dating the Suits alum in 2016. Prince Harry didn't take kindly to his brother questioning his budding romance and, per sources close to the family, it was the beginning of the end for their close relationship. As royal expert Katie Nicholl explained in the documentary Princesses At War, "William was quite concerned that the relationship had moved so quickly," (via Express).

His wife, Kate Middleton, also allegedly warned Harry to take things slowly, reminding him, "He was dating someone with a completely different life, past, and career, and it would take time, care, and attention for them to integrate." But the happy couple got engaged the very next year with both Middleton and Prince William wishing them well in the press and expressing a desire to get to know Markle. For his part, Prince Harry told the BBC that he knew the very first time he met Markle that she was the one for him, with insiders sharing in Royals at War that he was drawn to her, "Confidence, commitment, drive and ambition."

Prince Harry may have been sure about Markle from the beginning, but Prince Philip warned him that marrying her would be a mistake for a shockingly snobby reason, allegedly telling him, "One steps out with actresses, one doesn't marry them," according to a report in The Sunday Times. Markle was a well-regarded actress in her previous life; she appeared in Suits for seven seasons, while also featuring in small roles in the likes of blockbuster movies, including Horrible Bosses, opposite Jennifer Aniston, and Remember Me, opposite Robert Pattinson, prior to marrying Prince Harry.

Prince Philip is widely known to have a very close relationship with his grandson, so the comment no doubt wounded Prince Harry, though sources suggest he stood up for Markle very "forcibly" whenever anyone questioned their relationship. The Times report also alleged that an unnamed "senior member" of the Royal Family dubbed Markle, "the degree wife," suggesting she would only last for three years with her husband. It seems that whatever rift existed between them has since been healed, however, as Prince Philip was actually the first royal to meet baby Archie, according to Insider.

Nigel Cawthorne, author of Prince Andrew, Epstein and the Palace revealed that, in his view, Prince Charles wasn't Markle's biggest fan either, precisely because of that same strong, no-nonsense personality that allegedly rankled other family members. He feared there was, "Only room for one strong woman," in the Royal Family, as Cawthorne explained to The Sun. As he explained, "I think [Prince Charles] likes strong women, but in The Firm there is only room for one Queen." Prince Charles envisioned problems down the line with the amount of press attention being drawn by Prince Harry and Markle, too.

"Harry and Meghan amplified the popularity of the Royal Family in the way that Prince Andrew and Fergie did at the time," noted Cawthorne. In reality, though, he had to offer his support to the new couple just like everyone else, as there wasn't much he could do to stop them. Still, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex left the family less than two years after marrying, officially ending royal duties on March 31, 2020, and sending shock-waves through the monarchy.