A royal commentator has claimed that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s public visit to New York City is the first example of the pair attempting to establish a rival Royal Family in their new lives.
The Sussexes attended yesterday’s (September 23) event to promote fair vaccine distribution in New York City. This was their first public engagement since Lilibet’s birth.
Hosted by the city’s Mayor Bill de Blasio, the couple were given a private sightseeing tour, which included a visit to the 9/11 memorial site and the UN building.
After Harry and Meghan left royal duties in March 2013, they moved to the USA.
Now, speaking on the Mail’s Palace Confidential podcast, diarist Richard Eden has claimed that this visit marks the beginning of Harry and Meghan’s new dynamic as a form of quasi-Royal Family.
(Image: Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
“I think it’s a very awkward situation”, he suggested.
Host Jo Elvin continued, pointing out: “They’ve been very clear in using their titles for this visit as well, haven’t they?”
Richard agreed: “Yes, this is the first visible example of them doing what I’ve always said they would do in trying to establish a rival Royal Family.
“They are the royals across the water, and they’re embarking on this royal-style engagement to demonstrate that.”
Royal journalist Victoria Murphy also noted that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, having held onto their titles, are still establishing their new position as civilians.
She claimed: “You look at this and you see that they will feel that they’ve achieved a lot of what they wanted to achieve.
“They’ve left the Royal Family, but they are making this huge appearance – they’ve been invited by the mayor of New York – they are headliners at this big global event.
(Image: Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
“It kind of really does cement their relevance, despite the fact that they’ve stepped back as working royals.”
But, Victoria pointed out that the royal institution in Buckingham Palace will be keen to stress that Harry and Meghan are no longer directly affiliated when they conduct trips of this kind.
“They don’t represent anything else now, they don’t represent the monarchy, they don’t represent Britain, they’re just there as individuals”She added.
“And I think moving forward now, we are going to see a little bit more of how they hope their new identities will be shaped.
(Image: Getty Images)
“Are they going to almost re-package the royal model? Are they going to make all of these appearances, some small, some big and be very visible and have this kind of engagement programme?
“Or are they going to be less visible, work on long-term projects and make occasional appearances?
Despite the appearance of choice, Victoria acknowledged that it may not be so easy for the public to distinguish between Harry and Meghan and the rest of the royals.
She suggested: “But you can’t separate them from the family – they’re very much in the family – so, will people draw that distinction?
“The Royal Family have made it very clear that they don’t officially represent them and that they don’t officially represent Britain, and that’s something they’ll have to make very clear in the future as well.”
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