Eight years ago today, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex announced their engagement to the world, but behind the scenes, Prince Harry received a stark warning from his grandfather, Prince Philip.
The Unexpected Reaction
When Prince Harry and Meghan Markle revealed their engagement on November 27, 2018, after just eighteen months of dating, the news was met with widespread public delight. However, within the royal family, one voice expressed significant disapproval. According to royal biographer Andrew Lownie, the Duke of Edinburgh offered his grandson some brutally honest advice.
"One steps out with actresses, one doesn't marry them," Prince Philip reportedly told Harry. Lownie noted that while this might have been considered idle dinner party gossip, the remark bore the distinct hallmark of a classic Prince Philip bon mot.
A Pattern of Wariness
This was not an isolated moment of scepticism. Royal biographer Ingrid Seward, in her book My Mother and I, revealed that Prince Philip had been "very wary" of Meghan Markle from the very beginning of the couple's relationship.
His wariness extended to bestowing what he considered a humorous nickname upon the Duchess. Prince Philip referred to Meghan as "DOW" – an allusion to the Duchess of Windsor, Wallis Simpson, the American socialite for whom King Edward VIII abdicated the throne.
Despite his apparent misgivings, the late Duke of Edinburgh did attend the couple's wedding at St George's Chapel in Windsor on May 19, 2018, standing alongside Queen Elizabeth II for the ceremony.
Deepening Disapproval and a Clash of Duty
Prince Philip's disapproval of the Duchess intensified dramatically following the Sussexes' decision to step back from royal duties in 2020 and relocate to California. Ingrid Seward explained that Harry's grandfather was utterly perplexed by Meghan's actions.
Having himself abandoned his naval career, his birth citizenship, and his surname to become the Duke of Edinburgh and support the monarchy, Philip could not comprehend why Meghan was unwilling to make similar sacrifices.
"I think he's very, very disappointed because he feels he gave up his naval career to stand by the Queen and help the monarchy," Seward told Sky News in a 2020 interview. "He just cannot understand why she couldn't support Harry and help him rather than wanting to have her voice."
Prince Philip was not the only senior royal with reservations. In his memoir, Spare, Prince Harry wrote that his brother, Prince William, was also "nervous" about the relationship's rapid progression, having been "pretty discouraging" about him dating Meghan in the first place.
