Family conflict - Details about the dispute between the sisters-in-law: Meghan apparently felt superior to Kate as a self-made woman
They are the same age, married brothers Prince William and Prince Harry and yet Meghan always felt she had to take second place to Princess Kate. Not least because she will one day be Queen of Great Britain. A role that the actress was clearly never able to come to terms with at the royal court.
"She was constantly competing with Kate. Whatever she had, Meghan wanted more," a source told the British magazine "TheTelegraph" about Duchess Meghan. The magazine claims to have learned details of the sisters-in-law's dispute from various sources. Meghan Markle has been by Prince Harry's side since June 2016 and the couple made their relationship official in November 2016. She and her husband were part of the royal family until 2020, when they left and emigrated to America.
During their time at court, there were reportedly repeated conflicts and a kind of rivalry between the two sisters-in-law. There is talk of jealousies because the heir to the throne and his family lived in the lavish Kensington Palace, while Harry and Meghan only lived in the small Nottingham Cottage and later the slightly larger Frogmore Cottage.
Meghan is also said to have resented the fact that the Princess of Wales was able to choose her designer for big events first. Both adored Erdem Moralıoğlu at the time, but Kate was probably allowed to choose first and Meghan had to adapt. The moment when she introduced her best friend, stylist Jessica Mulroney, to the future Queen Kate and she is said to have had a real "fangirl moment" did not help the jealousy of the Sussex Duchess.
A source confirmed that Princess Kate seemed to be very popular with the staff: "The Princess of Wales is extremely popular with the staff. I remember her coming by Clarence House after the birth of Prince Louis, knocking quietly on the door of the staff quarters and introducing them all to the baby. That really touched her." Duchess Meghan is also said to have sought the favor of the staff. In Harry's memoir "Spare", he wrote that his wife "spread kindness and bought pizza and cookies" with baskets of food and flowers. She "hosted tea parties and ice cream get-togethers". But a source also says that when an ice cream van appeared at Kensington Palace, there were reportedly strict instructions that it was only to be enjoyed by the Sussexes' crew.
Duchess Meghan reportedly didn't feel needed
A sticking point in the relationship between the sisters-in-law is said to have occurred in 2018. As royal expert Tina Brown wrote in her book "The Palace Papers", Meghan took up most of the airtime at a Royal Foundation event. At the time, they were still performing as a foursome. "With insouciant matter-of-factness, Meghan tackled an issue that wasn't even on the Foundation's agenda - women's empowerment, which peaked with the #MeToo movement," Brown wrote.
The Duchess went on to say: "Women don't need to find a voice. They have a voice. They need to feel empowered to use it." According to the author, Prince William and Duchess Kate are said to have radiated a slight annoyance. After that, apart from official events such as Trooping the Color or the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II, they never appeared as a foursome again.
According to an insider from the Telegraph, Meghan was not comfortable playing "second fiddle". "I think Meghan always felt she was a self-made woman, whereas Kate didn't really have a career of her own. She seemed to feel she had more speaking rights than her sister-in-law, who had married into the family as an unknown, while Meghan saw herself as a philanthropist who could teach the royals a thing or two about charity."
There was no pressing need for her presence at the charity, a point Harry's wife is said to have struggled with: "I think she found it hard that the Royal Foundation was already a well-oiled machine when she got there," the source said.
According to an interview with royal expert Omid Scobie, who recently published the book "Endgame" about the royal family, Princess Kate and Duchess Meghan have not been in communication for four years. Before this status came about, Duchess Meghan was apparently the only one to call the heir to the throne's wife "Kate", whereas the whole family is supposed to call her by her full name "Catherine".
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- Despite living in the more modest Nottingham Cottage and later Frogmore Cottage, Meghan felt resentment towards Kate due to her residence in the grand Kensington Palace, within the Royal Court of Great Britain.
- The disputes between Meghan and Kate were reportedly fueled by jealousy, as Kate was often able to choose her designers for high-profile events before Meghan.
- Jessica Mulroney, a close friend of Meghan, added to the tensions when she met Kate, causing Meghan to have a "fangirl moment" that further highlighted her feelings of inferiority.
- Tina Brown, in her book "The Palace Papers", detailed a moment during a Royal Foundation event where Meghan took the spotlight, causing an apparent annoyance from William and Kate.
- According to a source, Meghan struggled with the established nature of the Royal Foundation, feeling like she was not needed or valued in the same capacity as Kate, who was a part of the royal family from birth.
- Four years have passed since Meghan and Kate have reportedly communicated, with Meghan only addressing Kate as Kate privately, while the rest of the family calls her by her full name "Catherine".
Source: www.stern.de
