Meghan Markle ‘Hated Being a Second-Rate Princess’ to Kate Middleton in the Royal Family
Meghan Markle found life in the royal family challenging as her expectations didn’t meet the reality of the situation. In his book Gilded Youth, author Tom Quinn quoted a Kensington Palace staffer who recalled Meghan was “shocked by palace protocol and by the fact that she was not and never could be first in the pecking order.”
Meghan Markle was reportedly ‘shocked by the palace protocol’
Quinn wrote about Meghan’s experience in the royal family, quoting a “staffer at Kensington Palace who remembered Meghan well” who could offer some first-hand insight.
The staff member explained (via Newsweek), “She is basically a very nice, smiley, super-positive person, but having always felt in control of her own destiny and with the sort of personality that strives to be the best, she suddenly found herself in an institution she found she couldn’t influence and that assigns roles to people that do not change.”
They added, “She was dazzled by the worldwide fame that being a princess would bring, but she was shocked by the palace protocol and by the fact that she was not and never could be first in the pecking order.”
Meghan Markle ‘hated being a second-rate princess’ in the royal family
The staff member shared how Meghan felt relative to Kate Middleton, saying she “hated being a second-rate princess.”
The staffer explained, “She hated the constraints and the rules; she hated being a second-rate princess — second to Catherine Middleton, I mean.”
They continued, “She thought she would be living in Windsor Castle, for example, and just couldn’t believe it when she and Harry were given Nottingham Cottage in the grounds of Kensington Palace.”
The staffer added, “Most of all she hated the fact that she had to do what she was told and go where she was told in the endless, and to a large extent, pointless royal round.”
Meghan’s expectations wouldn’t be met by following the royal rules, as the staffer noted, “I don’t think in the whole of history there was ever a greater divide between what someone expected when they became a member of the royal family and what they discovered it was really like.”
Kate Middleton was better at dealing with the restrictions of royal life, staffer says
According to the staffer, Meghan was also treated “in a slightly condescending way because she was not a blood royal.”
By comparison, Kate endured much of the same treatment but seemed better equipped to handle royal life.
“Kate had to put up with the same thing, but she was better at dealing with it because she does not have Meghan’s messianic tendencies and she used charm and patience to get people on her side rather than trying to hector them into being nice to her,” the staffer explained.
They continued, “The thing to remember is that there is no limit to Meghan’s ambition, and like most fiercely ambitious people, she never thinks, ‘Have I got this wrong? Am I overreacting?'”
The palace staff member commented on how perfectly matched Harry and Meghan are as a couple. “But it remains true that she is a lovely person so long as she is never crossed,” they shared. “For a weak boy unsure of himself like Harry, she is perfect because her absolute certainty makes him feel safe.”
