Palace Aides Reportedly Want Prince Harry And Meghan Markle To Do This

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle officially stepped down as senior members of the royal family in early 2020, according to People magazine. The two agreed to a "one-year transitional period," which was reviewed in 2021, leading to a statement from Buckingham Palace that confirmed Harry and Meghan would not be returning to the UK. "The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have confirmed to Her Majesty The Queen that they will not be returning as working members of The Royal Family. Following conversations with The Duke, The Queen has written confirming that in stepping away from the work of The Royal Family it is not possible to continue with the responsibilities and duties that come with a life of public service," the statement read, according to People.

Also in 2021, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex decided to sit down with Oprah Winfrey to air out their grievances caused by some members of Harry's family. That interview, which aired back on March 7, went viral, and caused a stir amongst several royals, including Harry's father, Prince Charles, and his older brother, Prince William. In addition, Harry chatted with Dax Shepard during an episode of the actor's Armchair Expert podcast that was uploaded on May 13. In that candid interview, the duke revealed his true feelings about living under the monarchy's rule. This reportedly made palace officials even more unhappy and it's now being reported that they want Harry and Meghan to make a change. Read on to find out more.

At one point, during Prince Harry's chat with Dax Shepard on Armchair Expert, he talked about his want to "break the cycle" when it comes to parenting his own children. Harry explained that Prince Charles' parenting style was based upon his own upbringing, thus bringing Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip into the discussion. According to the Daily Mail, this infuriated palace aides. "People are appalled that he could do this to the Queen when the Duke of Edinburgh is barely in his grave. To drag his grandfather into this is so shocking and disrespectful," an aide told the outlet, adding that Harry "has now spent a significant amount of time emphasizing that he's no different to anyone else and attacking the institution which he says has caused him so much pain." 

The aide went on to suggest that Harry and Meghan Markle should give up their royal titles. "There is a growing feeling that if you dislike the institution that much, you shouldn't have the titles," the aide told the Daily Mail. Harry and Meghan gave up their HRH (his/her royal highness) titles upon stepping down from their duties as senior members of the royal family, according to Page Six. Now, however, aides are reportedly suggested that the couple give up their duke and duchess titles. "They should put the titles into abeyance, so they still exist, but are not used...They should just become Harry and Meghan," an aide said.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have since been slammed for continuing to call themselves the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. Some royal experts suggest that Harry and Markle realize that their titles help them gain notoriety. For example, after Harry's interview with Dax Shepard on Armchair Expert went viral, royal editor Robert Jobson tweeted that "the queen should instruct [Harry and Meghan] they should not use [their titles]. Haz and Meg have made it clear they reject the institution [and] what it stands for. Why use titles then for books [and] other projects?"

Royal commentator Angela Levin echoed that sentiment, tweeting that Harry and Meghan "are being their usual hypocritical selves by saying they reject the monarchy while knowing it is what makes a variety of huge companies reach out to them and pay vast amounts of money." While Harry and Meghan no longer utilize their official Duke and Duchess of Sussex social media accounts, their titles are prevalent on the Archewell website. In fact, the two often refer to themselves as the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, despite seemingly trying to distance themselves from the royal family. So, will anything be done?

Queen Elizabeth bestowed dukedom on Prince Harry at the time of his wedding. He and Meghan Markle were named HRH the Duke and Duchess of Sussex after they officially tied the knot back in 2018. However, many find themselves wondering if the queen can remove the titles. According to Express UK, removing the HRH style was within the queen's sole control — and it's something that Harry and Meghan agreed to do when they decided to stay down as senior members of the royal family. However, removing the peerage "takes an Act of Parliament with Royal Assent."

Back in October 2020, royal expert Marlene Koenig explained that a "strict law" would make it "very difficult" for the queen to take away her grandson's title. This stems back to the Title Deprivation Act which was created in 1917. The law states that a person would need to be declared an "enemy" of the UK in order to be stripped of a British peerage. "The Duke of Cumberland's son could not inherit the peerage because he took arms against the United Kingdom. Has Harry taken up arms against the United Kingdom?" Koenig told the Express UK.