Meghan Markle was forced to "suffer in silence" and carry a "really heavy burden" while the public wrongly branded her a cruel and ungrateful daughter, a royal expert has claimed.
For years, the Duchess of Sussex faced a barrage of criticism for cutting ties with her estranged father, Thomas Markle. The public backlash reached fever pitch during the December 2025 media storm, when Thomas underwent a leg amputation in the Philippines and publicly pleaded to see his grandchildren, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet.
Letter revealed as final severing of ties
When it was revealed Meghan had sent him a letter during his recovery, the world assumed it was a heartwarming olive branch. However, the reality was entirely different. It recently emerged that the letter was a final, brutal severing of ties, with Meghan reportedly telling him he would never see his royal grandchildren because she knew of the dark allegations against him.
Thomas Markle Snr is currently at the centre of a massive police probe after his son, Thomas Markle Jnr, claimed to have found a stash of child sex abuse images at his father's former home in Cebu. Thomas Snr has furiously slammed the claims as "sick lies" and vehemently denies any wrongdoing.
Royal author defends Duchess
Now, royal author Duncan Larcombe has shed light on the immense personal toll the secret must have taken on the Duchess while she was publicly vilified for abandoning her ailing father.
Speaking to New Magazine, Mr Larcombe explained: "She kept quiet and rolled with quite a lot of punches – when people were saying she was a cruel and ungrateful daughter who had abandoned her father."
He added: "We now know that narrative was completely wrong; she would undoubtedly have been suffering in silence. It must have been a really heavy burden."
