Inside Meghan Markle’s thorny relationship with Kate Middleton
Rumors of Meghan Markle’s contentious relationship with Prince William’s wife, Kate Middleton, have been swirling since the former “Suits” actress started dating Prince Harry in 2016.
But the royal record was set straight during Markle’s bombshell interview with Oprah Winfrey earlier this month, with Markle blaming the press for inventing stories to fuel their sisterly feud and royal insiders for vilifying her.
We’re taking a look back at when the relationship between Markle and Middleton began, how things progressed and where they are now.
Fab-ulous friends
In the very early stages of Meghan and Harry’s relationship, the TV star was immediately welcomed in by the royal family.
Not only was Markle seen hanging out with the Queen, but she and Harry were spotted at several appearances with William and Kate. At each gathering, the couples looked like a tight-knit family.
The pairs were quickly dubbed the “Fab Four” by the public, with the masses loving their every move.
A royal rift begins
However, it didn’t take long for the media to start reporting details of an alleged rift between the women.
In 2017, prior to her engagement to Harry, eyebrows were raised when Markle was nowhere to be seen at the wedding of Kate’s sister, Pippa Middleton. She reportedly didn’t show up over worries that the press would compare her derriere to the bride’s famous rump.
However, some believe the catalyst for Meghan and Kate’s tension stemmed from their husbands’ quarrels.
Reports claimed that William had doubts that Meghan would be a good fit as Harry’s wife.
And things seemed to heat up after sources claimed that Harry was mad at William for not rolling out the red carpet for Meghan when it was clear she would be joining the royal family.
The floral feud
Meghan and Kate’s beef in the media seemingly came to a head when reports surfaced that Meghan made Kate cry days before her wedding to Harry over her alleged strict guidelines on what Princess Charlotte could wear as a flower girl.
At the time, reps for the royal family did not deny the claim.
Living for love
The relationship between the couples seemed even more strained when Meghan and Harry decided to move from the grounds of Kensington Palace in 2018, where William and Kate’s apartment is situated, to the Windsor Castle grounds at Frogmore Cottage. At the time, Meghan was pregnant with baby Archie.
Megxit makes a muck
Tensions boiled over between Meghan and Kate when the Duchess of Sussex and Prince Harry announced they would be leaving their duties as royals in 2020.
Once Harry announced his plans to quit the royal family, his relationship with William suffered, thus distancing their wives from one another even more.
Kate was reportedly “exhausted” from having to take on more royal responsibilities after Megxit was underway, with a source saying at the time, “Kate is furious about the larger workload. Of course she’s smiling and dressing appropriately but she doesn’t want this.”
Meghan and Harry officially left their jobs as senior royals in February 2021. Markle has since claimed she never planned on resigning from her role but had to for mental health reasons.
May the best royal Win-frey
Meghan and Harry sat down for a tell-all interview with Oprah Winfrey days after their exit from the royal family was made official.
During the bombshell interview, Markle set the record straight on her relationship with Middleton.
Meghan claimed that the media inaccurately reported her rift with Kate over flower girl dresses, saying that it was actually Kate who made her cry.
“Everyone in the institution knew it wasn’t true,” Markle told Oprah, adding she wasn’t sure why no one from the royal family had denied the reports.
Meghan, who revealed she is pregnant with a girl during the interview, also clarified that the ordeal was blown out of proportion.
“There wasn’t a confrontation,” she said, adding, “I don’t think it’s fair to her to get into the details because she apologized, and I’ve forgiven her.”
And the two women have apparently buried the hatchet.
“It was a really hard week of the wedding and she was upset about something, but she owned it, and she apologized, and she brought me flowers and a note, apologizing,” Markle said.
The two seem to be on perfectly good terms again, despite William and Harry’s ongoing issues.
