Prince Harry and Meghan Markle visited Queen Elizabeth II on Thursday for the first time since ditching their royal roles for a life in America.
Harry and Meghan met with the Queen at Windsor Castle, where she has taken up permanent residence, in a stop-over visit ahead of the Invictus Games in the Netherlands, according to the Associated Press. The Thursday visit coincided with “Maundy Thursday,” when the Queen would traditionally hand out silver coins (“Maundy money”) to senior citizens at church, the outlet reported.
𝐁𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐊𝐈𝐍𝐆: A Sussex spokesperson confirms that, prior to arriving in The Hague for @InvictusGamesNL, Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan stopped in the UK this morning to visit the Queen. It was a Windsor visit that their team recently revealed the duke “hoped to do”.
— Omid Scobie (@scobie) April 14, 2022
This is the first time the couple have spent time with Harry’s grandmother since stepping down from their roles as senior working royals in 2020, the AP continued. The couple left their positions amid pressure and the British media’s treatment of Meghan, the outlet reported.
The visit caught the media by surprise, according to the Washington Post. “The Windsors are a fractured family, with hurt on all sides. A brief visit is a start, but not the resolution. It’s notable that Harry and William didn’t attempt to meet up — their relationship clearly remains profoundly damaged,” Royal commentator Peter Hunt tweeted.
Harry and Meghan still maintain their titles as the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, but lost their police guard when they left their formal roles in the royal family, the AP continued. Harry is in the midst of suing the British government as they have allegedly restricted his ability to pay for his own security protection when visiting the British Isles, the outlet reported.
Their two children, nearly 3-year-old Archie and 10-month-old Lilibet, did not travel with Harry and Meghan as this was reportedly deemed too risky sans security, the outlet continued. (RELATED: REPORT: Prince Andrew Settles Child Sex Assault Lawsuit Out Of Court)
The couple are supposed to participate in an event at The Hague on Good Friday before the Invictus Games commence Saturday, the AP reported. A Netflix film crew will reportedly follow them due to production of upcoming series focused on the games, according to the BBC.