After the tragic death of Queen Elizabeth II, every single member of the royal family has been under pressure – and in the spotlight.
Unsurprisingly, there has been an extreme focus on Meghan Markle – who some claim is enduring ”a hellish kind of hazing.”
But it is not only during this heavy mourning period that the Duchess of Sussex has been under fire. Unfortunately, she has also been given several cruel nicknames over the years – and the latest may be a little bit over the line…
The last number of years have seen Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s relationship with the British royal family deteriorate. Yet during the funeral of Queen Elizabeth, the couple reunited with the other royal family members to show a united front.
However, tensions between the members of The Firm still seem to be high.
According to Meghan’s US chat show host friend Gayle King no peace deal has been struck between the Sussexes and the rest of the Royal family.
Criticism from royal fans
During the state funeral, Meghan Markle beautifully honored the Queen. She wore the pearl and diamond earrings the Queen gave her during their first joint engagement in 2018. The Duchess of Sussex followed royal protocol with her clothing during the mourning process.
However, many royal fans couldn’t sit quiet and reacted to the fact that Meghan seemed to break a certain royal tradition.
It’s reportedly been tradition – though not mandatory – that the royal women wear a mourning veil. Kate, Camilla – the Queen Consort – and Princess Sophie were among several women seen sporting such a veil, together with the traditional black hat. Meghan Markle and young Princess Charlotte, however, decided not to wear the veil.
Meghan’s tears
Meghan also came under fire during the Queen’s funeral.
As King Charles III was fighting back tears when his mother’s coffin was lowered into the Royal Vault earlier this week, viewers could see how Meghan Markle also wiped tears from her face after the state funeral, with makeup visibly seen on one of her black gloves.
The funeral was covered by Today and led by anchor Karl Stefanovic, who decided to poke fun at Meghan after pictures of her crying were published.
He said they were open to interpretation, implying that pictures of Meghan wiping the tears from her face were perhaps misleading.
“There’s been lots of photos around and interpretations of photos and reading into photos [meanings] that may or may not be true,” Stefanovic said.
“‘There’s a couple of Meghan, um, with a tear running down her face – apparently – and also even one of Princess Charlotte that everyone was saying she was crying, and we don’t know if it was true or not.”
”Hellish kind of hazing”
While Meghan has always been vocal about their unfair treatment by the Royal Family, no one from the family itself has sided with them or confirmed their allegations. But this week, Christina Oxenberg, a third cousin of King Charles III made some claims which confirm what Harry and Meghan have been saying all along.
She said the Royal Family has a checkered history of hazing women and men in the family to date and or marry. In a conversation with the New York Post, she said that the only women who survive that kind of treatment are “tough as nails.” This is one of the rare instances that someone in the family itself has acknowledged how dreadful it can be to try to be a part of it.
The American-Serbian writer, a descendant of Serbian royalty, also wanted to give some words of encouragement to Meghan and said, “To Meghan Markle, I say, ‘What you are going through is a hellish kind of hazing.’” She went on to add, “If she can just hang in there, someone else will come along who can take the heat. Nobody gets a pass.”
‘Frozen Out’ of Hollywood
As the two lovebirds took the world by storm, Harry and Meghan became somewhat of a royal favorite among the public. But only two years after tying the knot in 2018, Harry and Meghan decided to leave the Royal Family for good. Instead, they settled in the US, seeking to live a more peaceful life.
But they haven’t managed to stay out of the limelight and both Meghan and Harry have been heavily criticized for sharing private details of Royal Family relations.
The couple’s jaw-dropping interview with Oprah forced the Royal family to hold crisis talks and William even broke protocol by speaking to reporters outside a school in London insisting his family was not racist.
It may also be that the winds have turned back home in the US.
After the queen’s death, new reports emerged from the United States that Meghan Markle and Prince Harry have been ‘frozen’ out of Hollywood.
Since the couple left the royal family in 2020 and settled in the sunny state of California, the couple has been trying to make a career in the entertainment industry. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, who played the role of Rachel Zane in Suits, signed lucrative deals ($166 million) with media giants such as Spotify and Netflix.
But according to commentator and Royal Reporter Kara Kennedy, it could be challenging for the couple when they return to California.
In a piece from The Spectator, Kennedy said that the couple is being “frozen out” of Hollywood ”one red carpet event at a time”.
According to the royal expert, ”the main reason for them being excluded is that organizers know that all media attention would be on them and take away from the event or people there to celebrate”.
Returning to the US
On the other hand, no one knows when the couple will return to the States – and if Harry will come along.
Royal expert and author Tina Brown says that the Queen’s death could start a more profound identity crisis within the Royal Family.
Speaking on New York Times podcast Sway in April, Tina Brown explained the Queen’s death could lead Harry back to his roots, and that he might spend more time in England.
That could mean he and Meghan would enter into a commuter arrangement to have a long-distance marriage.
“I think that Harry is going to want to come back when the Queen dies to serve his country. And I think they will find a way to reel him in,” Brown said, as quoted by The Mirror.
Meghan Markle nickname
One might think The Windsors would be above nicknames, but it appears they most definitely aren’t. Nicknames are very common within the Royal Family.
For example, Prince Harry has a special nickname for Kate Middleton – a nickname no one else uses. Harry calls his brother’s wife ”Cath”.
Cath.” His sister-in-law has been known as “Kate” to the rest of the world since deciding to go by that moniker during her university studies. In 2017, Middleton and William spoke on BBC Radio 1 about nicknames. The radio host had heard that Harry referred to the couple as “William and Cath.”
“Is this a thing just in the family?” the host asked Kate.
“Yeah, I’m not sure,” she answered. “I’m not that familiar with it I have to say, but I’ll answer to most things, to be honest.”
But if Kate Middleton got a very harmless nickname, it’s the opposite for her sister-in-law At least if we are to believe the controversial Royal biographer, Tom Bower, Meghan Markle was referred to as ”that minx” by Harry’s stepmother, Camilla Parker Bowles.
In an interview with The Sun, Tom Bower claimed that Camilla had been suspicious of Meghan. But the new Queen Consort kept her lips sealed and didn’t want to say something in public, for the sake of Harry.
“From the outset, Camilla was suspicious about the adventuress from Los Angeles,” Tom told the newspaper in 2022 and added:
“She found it hard to believe that Meghan would sacrifice her career and independence to serve silently as a team player devoted to the monarchy.”
But maybe we should take those accusations with a pinch of salt. Because it has also been reported that Camilla and Meghan have a pretty good relationship. For example, a source could tell the Daily Mail that Camilla invited Meghan to lunch when the latter first joined the royal family.
“Meg was grateful to Camilla who was very supportive and invited her out for private lunches, particularly around the time of her marriage,” the friend alleged. “She listened to her and understood that it’s really difficult joining the Royal Family from an otherwise ‘normal’ life. Much like Meghan, Camilla had experienced a lot of negative press and hostility from courtiers due to her relationship with Charles when he was still married to Diana,” the insider told Daily Mail in 2020.
Nickname in the US
In July of 2020, Meghan and Harry moved into their new home in Montecito, California. The area is home to many celebrities that want away from the hustle and bustle of Hollywood; celebrities like Oprah Winfrey, Gwyneth Paltrow, and Ellen DeGeneres are all residents.
As per reports, Meghan can often be spotted hanging out with her A-list buddies, and apparently, she also has a new nickname in the area.
Meghan Markle’s neighbors have dubbed her the “Princess of Montecito”, according to a source who spoke to Page Six. The nickname comes from ”her antics in the ritzy area” according to the tabloid.
“If she’s going into Beverly Hills or West Hollywood for lunch or dinner, she’ll generally call ahead and request a table that is completely secluded,” a source told the UK’s Closer magazine.
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