We previously reported that Prince Harry will be attending King Charles’ coronation on May 6th, but wife Meghan Markle would be remaining in California with Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet. A close friend of Meghan’s is now sharing that, while Meghan did want to support Charles at the celebration, she felt the negative attention she would receive was not worth the gesture.
The anonymous friend told People, “Meghan wants to be there to support her father-in-law, but at the same time, the scrutiny she receives outweighs the support. There’s always going to be that other side challenging their reasoning, and who wants to put themselves in that position?” A palace source added, “It would have been quite significant if Harry hadn’t attended his father’s coronation, but I’m not surprised Meghan isn’t going given the circumstances.”
Meghan's Friend Says: 'At This Point, It's Become So Personal'
King Charles is said to be "pleased" that Harry will be attending the coronation, but friends of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex say that it has all been a compromise. "At this point, it's become so personal," a friend told People. "Maybe what they wanted wasn't achieved, but at the end of the day, he's going there to support his dad."
Other reports say that, while the King is happy the Duke of Sussex will be in attendance, there is possibly just as much celebration on the palace's end that the Duchess won't be part of the festivities. "I think everyone's delighted she's not coming," former BBC reporter Tom Bower told Page Six on Thursday. "They made sure that she wasn’t going to come by making sure that she was told she’d have to curtsy three times, that she wouldn’t be in the spotlight, that she wouldn’t play any part in the whole thing and that if she came, they’d be put in row 54 in the back behind the column."
Of course, this final detail has left many shocked. "Not a white woman telling the Black Princess to 'sit at the back'," wrote the Twitter account MadameNoire, in reference to another story naming Kate Middleton as the final word in preventing Meghan's attendance at the coronation. Many on Twitter agreed with the poor optics of the situation:
They just cannot stop talking about her, can they? Meghan lives rent free in their heads while just loving her family and going about her life. The RF are so bitter and small. It’s pathetic.
— MrsDinDjarin (@JerseyItaliana) April 18, 2023
Still others debated the belivability of the story:
Gosh and you believe the tabloids
— Reasonable Voice (@youreallmad) April 18, 2023
Meghan Will Be Home Celebrating Prince Archie's Birthday
Instead of attending the May 6th celebrations, Meghan and family—including her mother, Doria Ragland—will be staying stateside and celebrating Prince Archie's 4th birthday, which happens to coincide with the coronation day.
Those in the royal household feel that Prince Harry will be glad that he attended after all is said and done: "he will look back on it and think it is better to come and play his part and say, 'I saw my father crowned', and tell his children about it," a source told People.
