Buckingham Palace Reacts To Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's Shocking Announcement - Did They Not Tell Queen Elizabeth In Advance?

Source: Twitter

Just a few hours after Prince Harry and Meghan Markle announced that they were stepping down as senior members of the royal family, Buckingham Palace officially released a statement about the shocking news. And, it appears that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex didn’t tell anyone in advance about their big decision – not even Queen Elizabeth.

“Discussions with The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are at an early stage,” the palace said in a statement. “We understand their desire to take a different approach, but these are complicated issues that will take time to work through.”

BREAKING A palace source tells the BBC that senior members of the Royal family feel “hurt” by the announcement that Harry and Meghan are to withdraw from their current Royal roles. The source confirmed that no members of the royal family were consulted.

— Jonny Dymond (@JonnyDymond) January 8, 2020

The BBC’s royal correspondent Jonny Dymond completely spilled the tea from behind-the-scenes at the palace, tweeting that Prince Harry and Meghan issued their personal statement without consulting anyone in the royal family. He added that the palace is “disappointed,” and there is “clearly a major rift” between the Duke and Duchess of Sussex and the rest of the royal family.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle shocked the world on Wednesday when they revealed in a statement on their Sussex Royal website and their Instagram page that they were stepping away from the roles as “senior” members of the royal family. Instead, they want a more “progressive” role in The Firm, and they also want to make their own money.

Queen Elizabeth II is a level of passive aggression I dream about. pic.twitter.com/lmwXpXiGGx

— Ian Higham (@highamian) January 8, 2020

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex also revealed that they will be splitting their time between the UK and North America. They wrote that after many months of reflection and internal discussions, they chose to transition this year to a more “progressive” role and work to become financially independent. They noted that they will continue to fully support Her Majesty The Queen.

Harry and Meghan explained that the “geographic balance” would allow them to raise their son Archie Harrison with an appreciation for the royal tradition into which he was born, while also having the space to focus on the next chapter in their lives, which includes the launch of a new charity.

Kensington Palace, which is the home of Prince William and Kate Middleton, and Clarence House – the home of Prince Charles and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall – have not commented yet about Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s big announcement.