Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have been thanked by their respective patronages. Some of them still prefer them over their replacement.
No family is perfect. Everybody gets into tiffs with their loved ones at some point. However, when you lead a public life, your problems might be aired in front of thousands of people. The situation also gets painted in thousands of colors, regardless of the truth.
Earlier in February 2021, the Queen of the UK had said in a statement that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, won't be returning to their royal life. "All are saddened by their decision," the statement said. As a result, they will lose their honorary titles and patronages, and that became a point of contention. Or, so it seemed.
However, Harry and Meghan were "disappointed" that they won't be able to continue with their royal patronages or Harry won't get to keep his military appointments, said a source close to the couple to People. And, their disappointment is normal in a situation like this. Even then, "they respect the decision that was reached."
Harry's grandmother Queen Elizabeth II, 94, had said in the statement that "it is not possible to continue with the responsibilities and duties that come with a life of public service" since they have moved away from the royal life. But, the young couple responded in their statement saying "service is universal." As proof, the Sussexes reached out to the Genesis Women's Shelter & Support in Dallas, which had suffered damage in the winter storms.
"Today the news of our damages reached Prince Harry and Meghan, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex!" the shelter's official account Tweeted. The shelter provides women and children in abusive situations a way to move ahead in an independent and safe life. "Through their nonprofit, they are supporting us by replacing the roof at our transitional housing facility & helping us meet our immediate needs. THANK YOU, ARCHEWELL FOUNDATION!" they said.
Today, the news of our damages reached Prince Harry and Meghan, The Duke and Duchess of Sussex! Through their nonprofit, they are supporting us by replacing the roof at our transitional housing facility & helping us meet our immediate needs. THANK YOU, ARCHEWELL FOUNDATION! pic.twitter.com/rFtxzvtFRo
— Genesis Women’s Shelter & Support (@GenesisShelter) February 22, 2021
"Not only will this gift provide for our critical needs, it shines an international spotlight on violence against women and children, letting survivors know that they are not alone," Jan Langbein, CEO of Genesis Women's Shelter & Support, told People.
The pushback from the Sussexes reportedly didn't go down well with the royal family in the UK. Some sources said that the couple wouldn't have responded the way they did if the palace statement simply referred to "royal" service. Even then, "there is a very strong family bond," a source told People.
Sources close to the brothers opine that now that there needs to be no negotiation about royal roles since Harry dropped out from that race, the brothers can start building their relationship back.
The decision to remove Harry's patronages from him seems to be hastily done since even those organizations, like Rugby Football Union and the Rugby Football League, were blindsided. "There will be a lot of disruption. The World Cup is in autumn and Prince Harry was expected to be front and center of that," a source from the Rugby Football League reportedly told the Telegraph, which also reported: "There have been rumors that he could have some role, that there could be some middle ground, but whether that is feasible I don't know."
"We were completely blindsided by the news to be honest. We were very keen to keep Prince Harry, he's been fantastic," the source added.
Other organizations like the Queen's Commonwealth Trust, where Harry was President and Markle was Vice President, thanked the couple. "They enabled us to make fast progress and have helped us to take the organisation to readiness for its next phase," they wrote. "We are glad they remain in our circle of supporters."
A statement from QCT following today’s statement from Buckingham Palace. We would like to thank The Duke and Duchess of Sussex for their support and commitment to Team QCT: pic.twitter.com/lzBG9ExnUL
— The Queen's Commonwealth Trust (@queenscomtrust) February 19, 2021
The National Theatre, which Markle had endorsed, shared a statement on Twitter saying they were "very grateful for the support offered by the Duchess of Sussex."
"The Duchess championed our work with communities and young people across the UK, and our mission to make theatre accessible to all," they wrote.
A statement regarding the National Theatre’s patronage following today’s statement from Buckingham Palace. pic.twitter.com/YpsubODgHV
— National Theatre (@NationalTheatre) February 19, 2021
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Cover images source: Getty Images | Photo by (L)WPA Pool (R) Pool
