Royals: Queen blesses Harry and Meghan’s split from family and move to Canada

The Queen, after face-to-face talks, agrees to grant the couple an independent life. But it will come at a price.

Queen Elizabeth has given her blessing to Harry and Meghan’s split from the royal family and relocation to Canada.

Queen Elizabeth has given her blessing to grandson Prince Harry and his wife Meghan’s wish for a more independent future following crisis talks involving the most senior members of the royal family.

The head of state announced there would be a “period of transition” with Harry and Meghan — who have said they want to be financially independent and step back as senior royals — living in Canada and the UK.

The Queen was joined at Sandringham by the Prince of Wales and Prince William, the Duke of Cambridge, for the face-to-face talks with Harry and described them as “very constructive”.

It is unusual for the Queen to issue a statement in her own name — when not paying condolences after the death of a foreign head of state or sympathising following a natural disaster or terrorist attack.

And the formal titles of the couple — the Duke and Duchess of Sussex — were not used by the monarch, raising doubts over whether the Queen will allow Harry and Meghan to retain their royal titles.

A statement from Her Majesty The Queen. https://t.co/IVSyfeojqk

— The Royal Family (@RoyalFamily) January 13, 2020

“My family and I are entirely supportive of Harry and Meghan’s desire to create a new life as a young family,” the 93-year-old monarch said in a six-sentence statement that mentioned the word “family” six times.

“Although we would have preferred them to remain full-time working Members of the Royal Family, we respect and understand their wish to live a more independent life as a family while remaining a valued part of my family.”

Last week’s shock announcement by Harry, 35, and Meghan, 38, exposed divisions in the Windsor family and prompted soul-searching over what it means to be royal in the 21st century.

The couple consulted neither the Queen nor Prince Charles before their announcement, made on Instagram and their own website, a step seen as impertinent and premature by a family whose roots go back through a thousand years of European history.

Meghan is currently in Canada with their infant son Archie. She had been expected to join Monday’s discussion by telephone.

She and Harry say they want a “progressive” new role for themselves and financial independence, which could mean working in the United States where Meghan is from.

But it is unclear how they will pull off a partial pullback from royal roles — which some media have dubbed “Megxit” in a play on Britain’s tortuous Brexit departure from the European Union – or who will pay for a transatlantic lifestyle.

The Queen said there was more work to be done on finalising future arrangements for the couple.

Harry and William joint statement

Earlier, Harry and William released a joint statement dismissing a “false story” suggesting there was a severe strain on their relationship.

The statement read: “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.”

Though the statement did not name the newspaper, The Times had a front-page story about the crisis in which a source alleged that Harry and Meghan had been pushed away by the “bullying attitude from William.”

William, 37, and 35-year-old Harry formed a close bond following their mother Diana’s death in 1997 but Harry admitted last month they had drifted apart and were now on different paths

Prince William, the Duke of Cambridge, left, and Prince Harry.

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The Sussexes said last week they wanted to step back as senior royals, divide their time between Britain and North America, rip up long-established ways of working with the media and seek a “progressive” and financially-independent new role.

That triggered the Queen to direct her officials, plus those of Charles, William and Harry, to seek urgent “workable solutions” following the bombshell announcement.

Charles, 71, the heir to the throne, flew back from Oman, where he attended a condolence ceremony Sunday following the death of the late Sultan Qaboos.

Issues that had been up for debate included how much money the couple will still receive from Charles — who largely bankrolls his sons and their families — the couple’s royal titles and how they can raise their own finances without compromising the monarchy.

Their plan for a new way of working said they intented to continue to “fully support” Queen Elizabeth and honour their duties to the monarch, the Commonwealth and their patronages.

However, they want to make 2020 a “transition” year to carve out their new role and launch their new Sussex Royal charitable entity and seek to raise their own sources of income.

They also want to keep their newly-renovated Frogmore Cottage home on the queen’s Windsor Castle estate as their British base.

The Queen, Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, pose for a group photo at the Queen's Young Leaders Awards Ceremony at Buckingham Palace in London.

‘Deeply unhappy’

The London Evening Standard newspaper said the family was “falling apart, and should try to put itself back together”.

The Sussexes need to accept they have “caused a lot of upset”, while the others must understand that the pair are “deeply unhappy with the role cast for them as minor royals hanging on the purse-strings of their relatives”.

The way forward must involve the freedom to live abroad and earn money, the daily said.

Harry, now sixth in line to the throne following the birth of William’s three children, has been open about his mental health issues in coming to terms with his mother’s death in a Paris car crash, when he was just 12.

He and Meghan in October admitted to struggling with the spotlight following their wedding at Windsor Castle in May 2018 and son Archie’s birth 12 months later.

US former television actress Meghan was widely welcomed as a breath of fresh air for the royal family when their engagement was announced in November 2017.

But the prince and the ex-Suits star have lashed out at negative news coverage since the wedding — some of which Harry says was racist — in light of Meghan’s bi-racial heritage.

BBC royal correspondent Jonny Dymond said Harry and Meghan must commit to public service if they are to remain as royals.

“A deal will probably be crafted — however the direction of travel is one way. Prince Harry and Meghan are looking for the exit,” he said.

Reuters, AFP

Prince Charles, Prince of Wales, Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, Meghan, Duchess of Sussex and Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex arrive for the royal family's traditional Christmas Day service at St Mary Magdalene Church in Sandringham.