Breaking: Meghan's Letter to The King Leaked

Telegraph Exclusive Reveals Details of Private Royal Correspondence

~Updated with reaction from members of the Royal rota and the Sussexes below~

A stunning, completely unexpected news splash was released for the front page of Saturday’s Telegraph, revealing details of private letters between Meghan Markle and King Charles III, letters apparently written right after that Oprah interview.

The reporter, Victoria Ward, has had frequent and close access to Sussex sources in recent months, so it’s not surprising she has this scoop. You have to think it came from someone close to Team Sussex.

Here’s the link to Ward’s article: Meghan wrote to King Charles over racism concerns (telegraph.co.uk)

The letters in question are from 2021, after that Oprah interview - so why are details being released now? Who has the motive to release them?

It seems to be because of the Coronation, and Meghan’s decision not to attend.

It seems clear that someone close to Meghan wants to keep putting her side out in the public domain:

Right at the onset of the article, Ward writes that Meghan believes:

“She has not received a satisfactory response to her concerns, and that is believed to be one factor in her decision not to attend on May 6.” 

“Her concerns” relate to the allegations of racism made to Oprah, trying to link what she claimed were concerns about Archie’s skin colour, to his security, title, and status.

Ward reports that The King, then Prince of Wales, wrote to Meghan after the Oprah interview:

“He is said to be disappointed that the Duke and Duchess felt the need to make such high-profile and damaging allegations.”

What’s interesting is that when Meghan responded to the letter, she seems to have agreed the “racism” charge was not an intended slight, despite the grave way she described it on Oprah.

Ward writes:

“The Duchess acknowledged that the individual’s remark was not made with malice.

(umm… maybe you could have told the world that Meghan!??!!)

The Duchess’s letter is also said to suggest that she had never intended to specifically accuse the individual involved of being a racist but was raising concerns about unconscious bias.”

In other words, as early as 2021, Meghan was admitting in writing that this was not quite what she had portrayed to the world on Oprah. (transcript of her interview here)

Oprah: Because they were concerned that if he were too brown, that that would be a problem? Are you saying that?

Meghan: I wasn’t able to follow up with why, but that — if that’s the assumption you’re making, I think that feels like a pretty safe one.

Ward reported that Meghan was also still upset about the way the bullying investigation against her was handled, and that her complaints about it have also not been resolved.

Here’s what’s bizarre about this leak…

• This letter was written in 2021. Someone (nod, nod, wink, wink) is providing it as reason for Meghan not attending the Coronation, even though this happened in 21 and didn’t stop her from attending the Platinum Jubilee Celebration in 2022!

• We all remember that Meghan sued the Mail for publishing a private letter, but it was famously her friends who first revealed it existed. And now someone is leaking her private correspondence with the King? Bringing up old allegations from Oprah two weeks before the Coronation? Being sure to mention, “the letters make clear the identity of the senior member of the family who made the comment.”

• AND by releasing details of the letters, they actually make clear that King Charles was not the person who made the alleged comment.

My opinion on that? It is very similar to the PR move Harry and Meghan made right after the Oprah interview, when they announced the next day (through Oprah) that the person who made the comment was not the Queen or Prince Philip.

Is it possible someone is trying to win favour with The King, who now holds the position of power?

The article also came back - as many Sussex complaints do - to The Prince and Princess of Wales, Prince William and Catherine.

In my opinion, it’s increasingly harder to deny that the Sussexes seem to have an unhealthy obsession with the couple and their status.

Ward writes that the Sussexes were frustrated about their children’s titles and that their children would not be involved in the Coronation, saying:

“The omission only fuelled their feeling that their family plays second fiddle to the Waleses.” 

It’s astounding that Harry and Meghan - or perhaps just Meghan - have still not grasped the basic hierarchy and workings of a monarchy. (Frankly, any firm!) And struggle to remember that they were the ones who announced they didn’t want to be working Royals, and chose to live in the United States, some 6,000 miles away.

“The Palace’s delay in recognising the children’s elevated status caused frustration, not least as the Prince and Princess of Wales’s titles, and those of their children, were swiftly changed upon the late Queen’s death.”

And in a final bizarre note, Ward makes an observation that tensions between King Charles and Harry have reportedly eased, after a conversation about the Coronation. But almost immediately adds, “there were no such overtures with Meghan” as if the source made sure to mention that Harry was doing better with his father…. but what about Meghan?!

It is Harry’s family and Harry’s father, after all.

Worth noting, this was not the only leak from Team Sussex, friends are once again on the record in People Magazine this week.

It’s a strange strategy for a couple who once vowed they would never use anonymous sources, not to mention a couple who said their focus this year was “moving on” from their Royal life.

It also seems to be a strategy of chaos, lacking any cohesive messaging or plan.

It’s very hard to understand what the Sussex PR objective is here, they seem to be unravelling, throwing multiple things at the wall hoping something sticks.

But, even if it does, what do they hope to achieve?

You have to ask - would the details of these letters have been released if Harry AND Meghan were both attending the Coronation, and their reported demands had been met?

Is this backlash? Or something else?

Harry said on the record, and through sources, that he had several conditions for attending the Coronation. It seems clear The King did not budge, and his demands were not met.

Harry’s side would only concede that his security demands “were addressed” for the visit.

It was also obvious to many Royal observers, that the article (which clearly took time) was published on the day of the late Queen’s birthday, after a new photo of the Queen with her family was released. A photo where the Sussex family was conspicuous in its absence…

As news of Ward’s scoop spread early Saturday, some members of the Royal Rota were quick to add their personal theories on it.

Remember, the Sussexes announced quite dramatically in 2020 that they would no longer work with certain British media outlets.

Valentine Low at The Times, who broke the bullying story, asked if Meghan was trying to create problems for Harry ahead of the Coronation:

And Richard Palmer at the Daily Express, noting what appears to be Sussex double standards, and perhaps a better question: Did Harry know about it?

If the details in the new Telegraph article are false, or not leaked by someone on the Sussex side, we will almost certainly get a statement from the Sussexes over the weekend. But I can’t think of a single time they’ve disputed a “Sussex source” in one of Ward’s articles…

UPDATE: Meghan did in fact release a statement on Saturday, a strange one.

The big thing that’s missing: Where’s the outrage that your letters were leaked? Any remarks condemning The Telegraph for this intrusion? If she really knew nothing about this, why wait 24 hours to react? This statement doesn’t deny or clarify anything at all…

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You have to imagine that the real fury came from the Palace, and that they are not pleased at all that details of The King’s private family correspondence were released, and exactly two weeks before his Coronation. I wouldn’t be surprised to read some background briefing with more on that…

Someone close to the Sussexes seems to keep talking to the press, from The Telegraph to People Magazine, and possibly other outlets.

Do they think if they just keep talking, they will eventually convince everyone of their side?

Because all they’re actually doing, is digging a hole much deeper…