The love story between Prince Harry and Meghan Markle seemed, at first, like a modern fairy tale that promised to renew the stagnant British monarchy. However, behind the smiles and gestures of complicity, a family storm was brewing whose consequences still echo through the halls of Buckingham Palace.
Far from being a sudden fracture, the cracks in the relationship between the Duke and Duchess of Sussex and the rest of the British Royal Family began to appear much earlier than the public imagined. Meanwhile, a key figure had already detected the warning signs: Prince William.
New revelations suggest that the heir to the throne never felt comfortable with the arrival of the American actress. What many saw as a breath of fresh air, William saw as a source of deep concern, an intuition that time, for him, has only confirmed.
"Fame and fortune": the two words that set off alarms at the palace
Prince William's mistrust toward his sister-in-law was not a belated reaction to the conflicts that would later become public. According to royal journalist and biographer Phil Dampier in a recent publication for The Sun, the Duke of Cambridge had suspicions from the very beginning. The source of his distrust could be summed up in two very clear concepts that, in his view, motivated his brother's then-fiancée: "fame and fortune."
Dampier states that William feared that Meghan Markle saw her entry into the Royal Family not as a commitment to service, but as an unbeatable platform to boost her career and her status worldwide. This suspicion, which arose in the early stages of the relationship, created an unbridgeable distance between them.
While the world celebrated the romance, the future king of England chose caution, watching every move with a mix of skepticism and fraternal duty, concerned about the impact this union could have on his brother and, above all, on the Crown.
Queen Elizabeth II and her inner circle also shared the mistrust
William's distrust was not an isolated feeling within the palace walls. Although Queen Elizabeth II always showed a welcoming attitude toward the new duchess in public, doubts also existed in private. Phil Dampier describes as "dynamite" the statements once confided to him by Lady Elizabeth Anson, cousin of the monarch who died in 2020. According to Anson, one of the people closest to the sovereign, the queen herself had serious reservations about Meghan and her ability to adapt to the institution's rigid rules.
This view, coming from Elizabeth II's closest circle, reinforces the idea that the tension was palpable from the start. Although other sources, such as journalist Esther Krauke, clarify that the queen's initial impression was favorable, recognizing Meghan as an intelligent and prepared woman, the course of events proved that the cultural and approach differences were too great.
The royal machinery, with its protocols and its motto of "never complain, never explain," clashed head-on with the more direct and media-driven style of the Duchess of Sussex.
The wounds left open by "Megxit" are still far from healing, and these revelations only serve to provide context for the deep fracture that now separates the two brothers. William's stance, once seen by some as cold or jealous, is now reinterpreted as a premonitory attempt to protect the institution he will one day lead.
King Charles III, meanwhile, is fully aware of the pain and chaos this situation has caused, to the point of avoiding any mention of the Sussexes at official events, a silence that speaks for itself.
Although rumors of reconciliation occasionally surface, it is a very complicated matter. Both sides have their reasons and it will be difficult to reach an understanding. What is clear is that both Prince William and Queen Elizabeth II were right in what they already sensed. A similar case occurred in the Spanish monarchy. Juan Carlos I was the first to be wary of Letizia Ortiz. He was right but did not win. The current Spanish queen emerged victorious.