Harry And Meghan Set To Mark Big Milestone This Week
In January the Duke and Duchess of Sussex made the big announcement that they would be stepping down as senior members of the royal family and continue to work to be financially independent, much to the shock of the entire world. After multiple talks with the Queen, as well as with Prince Charles and Prince William, Prince Harry and Meghan finally made an agreement on how things will transpire.
The agreement is that there will be an initial 12-month review to ensure that all arrangements work for both parties, starting with March 31, which is just a couple of days away. The Duke and Duchess will formally keep their HRH titles, but will not be actively using them. The couple will no longer be undertaking official engagements in support of Her Majesty, as well as no office based at Buckingham Palace.
Prince Harry will also retain all his ranks in the military, those being Major, Lieutenant Commander and Squadron Leader, however, during this 12-month trial period, these titles will not be used as Harry will not perform any official duties associated with these roles. He will continue to champion some causes he has in the past, such as the Invictus Games. Among his final solo engagements as a royal, Prince Harry met with Jon Bon Jovi as he recorded a special song with military veterans at Abbey Road Studios for the games.
Another point that was discussed was the use of Sussex or Royal in trademarks, as it is expected that the couple will announce the details about their new non-profit organization in the next couple of months, but as stated on their website, it has been agreed that they “will not utilise the name ‘Sussex Royal’ or any iteration of ‘Royal.'”
The couple has been clearing up things in the UK in the last month, and they attended their last few royal engagements as well. The two attended the Endeavor Fund and the Mountbatten Festival of Music. To mark Women’s Day, Meghan visited a secondary school in East London where she met with young leaders from Queen’s Commonwealth Trust and the Association of Commonwealth Universities.
Harry and Meghan also joined the rest of the royal family for the Commonwealth Day service at Westminster Abbey on March 9, alongside the Queen, Charles and Camilla, Prince William and Kate, and Edward and Sophie Wessex.
In one of her statements regarding Harry and Meghan’s future, the Queen publicly supported her grandson and his wife, saying: “Harry, Meghan and Archie will always be much-loved members of my family. I recognise the challenges they have experienced as a result of intense scrutiny over the last two years and support their wish for a more independent life.
I want to thank them for all their dedicated work across this country, the Commonwealth and beyond, and am particularly proud of how Meghan has so quickly become one of the family. It is my whole family’s hope that today’s agreement allows them to start building a happy and peaceful new life.”