The relationship between Meghan Markle and the royal family has reportedly fallen apart since she and Prince Harry announced that they were taking a step back from royal duties. A “vindictive” Meghan is now refusing to bring baby Archie back to Britain to see Queen Elizabeth II, a new report claims.
A report from the March 6 issue of Us Weekly claimed that Meghan is upset with the way she has been treated and wants to keep her distance from the rest of the royal family. The report claimed that Meghan and Harry plan to leave their 10-month-old son at home in Vancouver as they attend to the last of their royal duties before making a break from the family and settling in to their new life in Canada.
The report added that Queen Elizabeth II was “heartbroken” at hearing she would not get to see her great-grandson, adding that it had been six months since she had seen the baby boy. She is now reportedly afraid that the split may become permanent.
“The queen’s worst fear is that she may never see Archie again,” an unnamed source told the celebrity news outlet.
The source added that Prince William and Kate Middleton also feel slighted, and that they have been trying to arrange more time for Archie to spend with his cousins, but have reportedly been rebuffed by Meghan and Harry. The source said that they don’t believe Meghan is purposely keeping Archie from them but instead needs her distance to get over the hurt of how she had been treated.
“There’s definitely a sense that they need to be nice toward her if they want to see more of him,” the source added.
But the report also painted Meghan as “cruel” and insensitive to how her decision to keep Archie in Vancouver was hurting other members of the royal family.
There have been other reports hinting at continued tensions in the royal family. Another article from the Daily Express claimed that Queen Elizabeth II privately scolded Meghan and Harry about the cost of their personal protection. The couple will be financially independent after their official break from royal duties, but will still be accruing taxpayer costs through the end of March. The report noted that it costs an estimated $25 million to protect the couple.
“The Queen has made it clear to the couple that at some point they are going to have to take on that cost themselves,” royal reporter Omid Scobie told the newspaper.