Meghan Markle reportedly raised concerns to King Charles III about the “unconscious bias” within the British royal family following her bombshell Oprah interview. After the Duchess of Sussex claimed a royal family member speculated on the skin color of her and Prince Harry‘s then unborn child, Archie, now 3, during the 2021 TV special, she wrote to her father-in-law to open a dialogue about it, according to The Telegraph. The monarch reportedly then kept a correspondence with the former actress.
In the initial note, Meghan reportedly named the royal member who made the comments about her child’s skin color. She went on to explain, however, that she had never intended to accuse one person of racism, and that she was more concerned about an overall “unconscious bias,” per the outlet. In a rare show of solidarity, both Meghan and King Charles reportedly “acknowledged that the individual’s remark was not made with malice.”
The King, then Prince of Wales, also replied by detailing his sadness over the royal rift and his disappointment over the unsavory claims being made public.
Although the reported correspondence took place a few years ago, a different source told The Telegraph that Meghan did not feel like she received a satisfactory response to her concerns, and this was partly the cause of her skipping out on Charles’ May 6 coronation.
Another reported reason for not attending was the drama around the coronation invites. “The Palace is also aware of the Sussexes’ frustration that initial email correspondence about the Coronation made no reference to their children and their potential involvement,” added the Telegraph’s insider. “The omission only fuelled their feeling that their family plays second fiddle to the Waleses.”
Or course, the report comes a day after the Prince and Princess of Wales — Prince William and Kate Middleton — shared a birthday tribute to the late Queen Elizabeth II with a snap of her great grandchildren, with Harry and Meghan’s kids, Archie and daughter Lilibet, 1, notably absent. Regardless of the reason, the omission of Archie and Lilibet certainly won’t help ease ongoing royal tensions.
And the birthday tribute comes a day after it was reported that William and Harry will both attend their father King Charles’ official coronation but they aren’t looking to mend their sibling rift. “Things are strained,” a source told People, just weeks ahead of Charles‘ May 6 coronation at Westminster Abbey. Another insider added that the royal siblings still have “no communication” and that their joint attendance will “do little to ease tensions.” They added, “I don’t think the coronation and a big conversation can be conflated.”