Prince Harry and Prince William Release Joint Statement, Meet Queen At Sandringham

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Prince Harry and Prince William Release Joint Statement, Meet Queen At Sandringham

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Last week was a wild one for the Royal family.

In what has now been dubbed "Megxit," Meghan Markle and Prince Harry announced they will be leaving their roles as "senior royals," and will be splitting their time between the UK and North America. They made the announcement on their social media accounts as well as their official website.

Harry and Meghan's decision to leave shouldn't have come as a surprise. They have been distancing themselves from the royal family for months now, and Meghan has noted that she's "not okay." ITV's Tom Bradby interviewed the Duchess of Sussex as part of the documentary Harry & Meghan: An African Journey, and she gave an honest answer about her experience as a royal.

“Any woman, especially when they’re pregnant, you’re really vulnerable, and so that was made really challenging. And then when you have a newborn, you know. And especially as a woman, it’s a lot,” she said. “So you add this on top of just trying to be a new mom or trying to be a newlywed. It’s um…yeah. I guess, thank you for asking because not a lot of people have asked if I’m okay, but it’s a very real thing to be going through behind the scenes.”

Bradby asks if it “would be fair” to say that she’s “not really okay, as in it’s really been a struggle?” to which Meghan responds, “Yes.”

Their actions have left many reeling, including the immediate members of the Royal family.

A senior source has told The Sun:

“Their statement was not cleared with anyone. It breaks all protocol. This is a declaration of war on the family.There is fury over how they’ve done this without any thought for the implications for the institution. The Queen is deeply upset. The Prince of Wales and Duke of Cambridge are incandescent with rage.Courtiers can’t believe it. There are so many unanswered questions but they’ve just up and done it without a thought for anyone else.The plan was there to discuss it and work out a way that works for everyone in the family."

The Queen will now be hosting crisis talks at an unprecedented royal summit at Sandringham on Monday, with implications not just for the future of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, but for other members of the royal family.

The Queen will be joined by Prince Charles, Prince William and Prince Harry – with Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, likely to dial in from Canada – and will seek to make key decisions on how the couple fulfil their desire to “step back” from frontline royal duties and become self-funding, according to The Guardian. Prince William hopes matters can be resolved so the royal family can once more play as “a team”, according to reports.

JUST IN:Queen releases statement after Sandringham summit See Updated Article In Full Here.

William told a friend: “I’ve put my arm around my brother all our lives and I can’t do that any more; we’re separate entities,” the Sunday Times reported.

The Duke of Sussex and Duke of Cambridge have also issued a furious denial over a newspaper report that speculated on a rift between them, branding it “offensive and potentially harmful”.

The statement, which was issued on behalf of Harry and William said:

"Despite clear denials, a false story ran in a UK newspaper today speculating about the relationship between the Duke of Sussex and the Duke of Cambridge.

"For brothers who care so deeply about the issues surrounding mental health, the use of inflammatory language in this way is offensive and potentially harmful."

Claims of bullying have been strongly contested by other sources close to the Cambridges and Harry, the Times article reported.

Dan Wootton, who broke the news of Prince Harry and Meghan's decision to step back, said:

"It is quite extraordinary that at a time when Prince William and Prince Harry are having so much warfare behind the scenes that they have come together to issue this joint statement."

He told the BBC that while he would not use the word "bullying", Prince Harry and Prince William's relationship has become "incredibly strained over the past 18 months", and that has played "a big part" in the disruption the Royal Family is experiencing.

The meeting is taking place at Sandringham as I type. Here are some of the topics which are believe to be discussed:

  • Titles
  • Living arrangements
  • Security
  • Funding
  • Taxation
  • Future royal duties and charity work

Head of Content, reality TV watcher and lover of cookies.