Today, Friday January 8th, marks exactly one year since Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s bombshell announcement to step down as senior royals of the British royal family, simultaneously surprising both the public and the Queen with their Instagram post detailing the shock move.
Immediately, the tabloids turned their attention straight to Markle, saying that it could only be her behind the decision – as though she’d somehow put a spell on Harry and was whisking him away to the USA with a blindfold on. Shortly after, the term “Megxit” was coined, a name which has stuck around despite it being completely unfair to point the blame at Markle for a joint decision, which Harry no doubt would have had more say in (it’s his family and his royal duty, after all).
Now, a year on, it appears blaming Markle was not only sexist, it was completely off the mark, too: the idea to split from the royal family and move overseas was actually all Harry’s. “It came to the point where he wanted a different way of life,” a source explained to Vanity Fair. “Meghan was simply the catalyst.”
Vanity Fair also revealed that the Sussexes’ shock announcement was not how Meghan and Harry wanted things to go, but that they were forced to announce the move ahead of time because the press caught wind of their plan. Royal historian Robert Lacey told the publication, “Harry and Meghan had put a great deal of thought into trying to create something that would work for both sides, but that was all blown when their plans were leaked to the press.”
“Harry was trying to get Charles, William, and the queen to approve a plan, which they wanted in writing. Harry wanted to talk face-to-face because he was worried it would leak,” Lacey continued. “Reluctantly, he did put it in writing, it did leak, and that led to the Sussexes making the announcement.”
Thankfully, despite a tumultuous year both globally and personally – Markle suffered a miscarriage with the couple’s second child in June – the pair, who just released the first episode of their podcast, Archewell Audio, together are happier and stronger than ever. “They’ve proved that they can master the challenge when it comes their way,” friend and author, Omid Scobie, told Vanity Fair. “When you look at everything they’ve faced, nothing has gone to plan but they’ve remained positive,” Scobie continued, “and it’s the support they give each other that gets them through.”
Time to give Harxit a whirl, some might say.
