The late Queen Elizabeth II tried to “steer Prince Harry onto the right path,” but Meghan Markle refused, an ex-royal butler has said. The royal couple, who married in Windsor in 2018, have been estranged from the Royal Family since 2020.
The couple made the decision to step away from royal duties that year, shortly before moving to the US with their son, Prince Archie, now aged six. The pair later welcomed their now-four-year-old daughter Princess Lilibet in 2021.
Speaking on behalf of Casino, former royal butler Paul Burrell exclusively told the Express that the late Queen did all she could to guide both Harry and Meghan on the “right path” during the latter years of her reign.
He said: “I think the Queen tried to steer Meghan and Harry on the right path, the path that she thought they should take. I thought that they would stay within the Royal Family.
“I didn’t want them to leave either. I thought they were a breath of fresh air, a force for good, and would do great work for the Royal Family and on behalf of the Royal Family. But they wanted their independence, and the Queen then tried to broker a deal.”
The former royal butler, who worked for the royals for 21 years, added: “She wanted Harry to stay as close to her as possible. But that couldn’t be because the American in the equation wanted a different solution.
“Meghan wanted change. The Queen herself tried to bend all the rules for Meghan. She tried to keep her within the fold, knowing that the institution could protect her better than she could be protected in the outside world.”
Speaking of the late Queen, he added: “She was a very wise woman, the Queen. She said, if you want to continue with your acting work, then that’s fine.”
The late Queen, who died in 2022, told Meghan she could “continue her acting career” if she did not want to pursue royal duties before she married Harry, a royal author previously claimed.
“Which is unprecedented for a member of the Royal Family. And then the Queen said, if you need someone to help you along the way, Sophie Wessex will help you.”