Eugenie May Try to Reunite Meghan Harry with Royals despite Queen Banning Them All from Balcony Ceremony

The Queen has excluded Prince Harry and his wife, Duchess Meghan, from a particular UK event. However, the couple’s visit might still yield good results with the assistance of Princess Eugenie. 

Duchess Meghan and Prince Harry shocked the world in January 2020 when they announced they were taking a step back as Royal Family senior members. The couple revealed that they would be splitting their time between two countries – North America and the UK.

This was seen as an unprecedented move in royal history. Harry and Meghan wished to work and become financially independent from the Royal Family while fully supporting the Queen. 

Duchess Meghan and Prince Harry at the British High Commissioner’s residence during their royal tour to South Africa on October 2, 2019, in Johannesburg, South Africa. | Source: Pool/Samir Hussein/WireImage/Getty Images

In February 2021, it was revealed that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex had given up using their His and Her Royal Highness (HRH) titles. However, Harry would remain a prince since it was a natural-born title.

Buckingham Palace revealed that the Queen confirmed the move meant the couple couldn’t continue with royal duties and responsibilities. However, she insisted that the pair would remain “much-loved members of the family” despite the saddening decision.

Duchess Meghan and Prince Harry at the 91st Field of Remembrance at Westminster Abbey on November 7, 2019, in London, England. | Source: Samir Hussein/WireImage/Getty Images

The couple’s spokesperson said Meghan and Harry were committed to their service and duty in the UK and worldwide. The duo continued to support organizations they represented when they had official titles.

In June 2021, it was reported that the couple had officially stepped down from their Royal Family roles. It was also revealed that they had been stripped of their military titles and royal patronages.

THE ROYAL FAMILY’S DISAPPOINTMENT AND THE RIFT THAT FORMED

Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Harry at the annual Chelsea Flower Show on May 18, 2015, in London, England. | Source: Julian Simmonds – WPA Pool/Getty Images

When the news broke about the Duke and Duchess of Sussex stepping back from their roles, the BBC reported how the Royal Family took the notice. According to the publication, Buckingham Palace was “disappointed” by the development.

To make matters worse, neither Prince William, Harry’s older brother nor the Queen were consulted before the Sussexes announced their news via their Instagram page. Jonny Dymond, BBC’s royal correspondent, delved deeper into the matter.

Queen Elizabeth II, Duchess Meghan, Prince Harry, Prince William, and Duchess Kate watch the RAF 100th anniversary flypast from the balcony of Buckingham Palace on July 10, 2018, in London, England. | Source: Paul Grover – WPA Pool/Getty Images

He noted how palace officials being disappointed by the couple’s move was “pretty strong.” Dymond said it indicated a “real strength of feeling in the palace” about how Harry and his wife allegedly stepped down without consulting anyone first.

The correspondent noted a “major rift” between the couple and the rest of the Royal Family. William allegedly said he felt sorrowful because he and his brother were now “separate entities,” however, he hoped it was a rift they could repair.

VISITING THE UK AND THE COUPLE’S PEACEMAKER

Princess Eugenie and Prince Harry during the Queen’s Birthday Parade and Trooping The Colour at Buckingham Palace on June 17, 2006, in London, England. | Source: Anwar Hussein/Getty Images

Despite relocating to the US with his wife and their son, Archie, Harry has since returned twice to his birth country after stepping down. The first time was in April 2021 to attend Prince Philip, his grandfather’s funeral, and the second was in July 2021.

The second visit was for the joint unveiling, with William, of his late mother, Princess Diana’s statue for her 60th birthday. Harry and his brother appeared to share a “warm reunion” during the second occasion despite their alleged rift.

Princess Eugenie, Prince Harry, and Princess Beatrice on the balcony of Buckingham Palace after the Trooping the Colour ceremony on June 16, 2012, in London, England. | Source: Dan Kitwood/Getty Images

Missing from the event were William’s wife, Duchess Kate, and Harry’s spouse. Meghan stayed behind in California with the couple’s children, including Lilibet Diana, who was welcomed on June 4, 2021.

In April 2022, the Sussexes stopped by in the UK to visit the Queen while traveling to the Invictus Games in Europe. Before Harry’s visits back to the UK, while the couple was still processing their move, they returned to the country in March 2020.

During that visit, it was confirmed that Harry and Meghan saw the monarch at Windsor Castle. On the other hand, the Duchess of Sussex had not returned to Europe since the 2020 visit, where she and her husband were carrying out their final royal engagements.

Their official stepping back was set to occur at the end of that month. In March 2021, the Daily Mail revealed the hope of a family reconciliation between the Sussexes and the other royals after the couple’s shocking CBS interview.

Princess Eugenie and Queen Elizabeth ll together on the balcony of Buckingham Palace following the Trooping the Colour ceremony on June 17, 2006, in London. | Source: Anwar Hussein/WireImage/Getty Images

In March 2021, Harry and his wife sat down for a tell-all interview with Oprah Winfrey, where they shared some surprising facts that led to them stepping back. However, it’s believed Princess Eugenie, Harry’s cousin, could be the key to ending the family rift.

Before Meghan met and fell in love with Harry, Eugenie was close to the former actress. Someone close to the princess claimed she and her husband, Jack Brooksbank, were friendly and supportive of their cousins and extended family. 

Queen Elizabeth II and Princess Eugenie on the balcony of the Royal Box at the Investec Derby Festival on June 4, 2011, in Epsom, England. | Source: Indigo/Getty Images

During the COVID-19 lockdowns, Meghan and her husband opened up their UK home, Frogmore Cottage, as a place Eugenie and Brooksbank could begin their family life. The insider revealed that the couples remained “close friends.”

The princess was expected to play the role of peacemaker in the family. She’s pretty close to the Queen, and after Philip passed, she honored him by thanking him for his love and dedication and vowed to help look after the monarch.

THE SUSSEX’S PLAN TO ATTEND THE QUEEN’S JUBILEE AND THE AWKWARDNESS IT PRESENTS

Queen Elizabeth II, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge with their children, Duchess of Cornwall and Prince Charles, Princess Royal, Duke of York, Duke and Duchess of Sussex, and Peter and Autumn Phillips and their children watch the flypast after the Trooping the Colour ceremony on June 8, 2019, in London. | Source: Victoria Jones/PA Images/Getty Images

In June 2022, Meghan and Harry will be returning to the UK with both children in tow. The couple’s spokesperson revealed that they were honored to be attending the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations with their children.

It would be the first time Lilibet gets to visit her father’s homeland, and it’s expected that she’ll celebrate her first birthday in the UK with the Royal Family. The Sussexes had already shared that they were keen on returning to the UK for family occasions.

Duchess Meghan and Prince Harry on the balcony of the Grand Pacific Hotel in Suva on October 23, 2018, in Suva, Fiji. | Source: Chris Jackson/Getty Images

However, the challenge of the jubilee’s four-day event was how they were at odds with what to do with Meghan and Harry at the party. A The Sun source claimed Harry wanted to attend, but it was going to be awkward for those in attendance, with the insider saying:

“Where will they be positioned if they turn up? What events can they attend?”

Duchess Meghan and Queen Elizabeth II during a ceremony to open the new Mersey Gateway Bridge on June 14, 2018, in Halton, Cheshire, England. | Source: Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images

Attending the Queen’s 70th year on the throne celebrations made organizers question where Meghan and Harry would be put during the Buckingham Palace balcony flypast. They also didn’t want the couple’s attendance to overshadow the monarch.

Organizers were allegedly just not sure what to do with the Sussexes. According to Harper’s Bazaar, the Queen’s spokesperson revealed that June 2, 2022’s Trooping the Colour balcony appearance would have limitations.

Queen Elizabeth II, Duchess Meghan, and Prince Harry watch a flypast to mark the centenary of the Royal Air Force from the balcony of Buckingham Palace on July 10, 2018, in London, England. | Source: Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images

Only her and Royal Family members who take part in official duties on behalf of her would be in attendance. Non-working members like the Sussexes, Prince Andrew, and his daughters Eugenie and Beatrice would not be present for this portion.

[Princess] Eugenie might’ve tried to help arrange contact between the royals to facilitate a reconciliation since the rift. 

Those joining are Prince Charles and his wife, William; his wife; and their three children, Prince Edward; his wife and their children, and Princess Anne and her husband.

However, the barred relatives would still be able to attend other jubilee events like the one on June 3, 2022. The family members could be seen at St. Paul’s Cathedral during the National Service of Thanksgiving.

The event honors the Queen’s reign in the Commonwealth and Britain. There’s hope that Eugenie might play “peacemaker” between Harry and Meghan and the Royal Family during the visit because of her close relationship with the couple.

Jonathan Sacerdoti, a royal expert, said the princess had even visited the couple at the California home and gone out in public with them. Her closeness to the Queen also meant she could mediate a meeting between the monarch and the Sussexes.

Reports state that the Queen decided Harry needed to meet her and his father, and the princess might’ve organized this meeting. Since the rift, Eugenie might try to help arrange contact between the royals to facilitate a reconciliation. 

Anomama