Prince Harry and Meghan’s Royal Exit Did Very Serious Damage to Monarchy Author Claims
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s departure from royal duties caused very serious damage to the monarchy according to author Catherine Mayer, who argues the institution lost two figures capable of connecting with audiences the remaining senior royals have struggled to reach.
Mayer made the striking assessment more than six years after the Duke and Duchess of Sussex stepped away from their positions as senior working royals and established a new life in the United States.
“I believe that the rupture in the family that saw Meghan and Harry go to the United States has done very serious damage to the monarchy,” Mayer, author of Divide & Rule, told Fox News Digital.
However, the author stressed that she was not placing responsibility entirely on the Sussexes for the family breakdown or the difficulties that followed their departure.
“That is not to say that I blame them for what happened,” Mayer explained, describing the fallout as something that affected both individual members of the family and the wider royal institution.
“I think this has been very painful for everybody and for the institution,” she added, highlighting the lasting consequences of a dispute that has continued to generate headlines years after Harry and Meghan left Britain.
Mayer also addressed polling surrounding public attitudes towards the monarchy, arguing that the institution has been “losing ground” amid a succession of controversies and major changes within the Royal Family.
She particularly pointed towards the controversies surrounding Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor and his association with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein as an important factor affecting perceptions of the monarchy.
However, Mayer believes Harry and Meghan’s absence created a different problem because the couple had demonstrated an ability to attract younger audiences and people who might not traditionally have felt connected with the institution.
“The only ones who can potentially do it are Kate and William,” she said, although she described the Prince and Princess of Wales as taking a more “small ‘c’ conservative” approach to their royal roles.
Mayer also highlighted the generational gap between William and Kate and their eldest son, Prince George, arguing that the monarchy currently lacks another prominent younger adult generation capable of capturing attention.
“Their children are really young,” she explained. “And there’s nobody in between George and his parents, William and Kate, to capture the imagination of younger audiences.”
Discussing what the Sussexes potentially brought to the institution, Mayer said Harry and Meghan possessed “a much broader appeal,” adding that the advantage they once offered the monarchy “has been lost now.”
Other royal commentators have similarly suggested that the consequences of the Sussex departure have not completely disappeared. Commentator Chard argued that “the damage has been done,” while also maintaining that the Royal Family has since “moved on” and is concentrating on its future.
Recent signs of improving personal relations have renewed hopes that Harry could eventually rebuild some family connections. However, reconciliation would not erase the institutional changes made after his departure with Meghan, and any rebuilding of trust is likely to remain separate from their status as non-working royals.
