The couple, who moved to the US a year ago, exposed their experiences with the British monarchy in an interview with TV host Oprah Winfrey.
Meghan Markle, the Duchess of Sussex and the wife of the British Prince Harry said there were concerns about how dark her son Archie’s skin would be before his birth and that such concerns explained why he was not given the title of prince.
Markle, whose mother is black and father is white, said she was naive before marrying into the British Royal Family in 2018, but ended up having thoughts of suicide and contemplating self-harm after asking for help but not getting it.
“They didn’t want him to become a prince or princess, not knowing what gender would be, what would be different from protocol, and that he wouldn’t get security,” Markle said in an interview with a talk show host. Oprah Winfrey aired late Sunday on CBS in the United States, where she and Harry now live.
“In those months that I was pregnant, all around the same time, so we have the same talk of ‘you won’t get a certainty, you won’t get a title’ and also concerns and conversations about how dark his skin might be when he is born. “
She declined to say who had expressed such concerns. Asked if she was silent or silenced, she replied, “The last one”.
The highly anticipated interview comes amid a bitter dispute between Markle and Harry on the one hand and the British monarchy on the other.
The couple, who married in 2018, have laid down their royal duties and now live in California.
Their critics accuse them of wanting all the glamor of their positions without the dedication it requires or the research it entails.
To their supporters, their treatment shows how an outdated British institution is lashing out against a modern, biracial woman, with an undertone of racism. That accusation is likely to gain momentum in light of Markle’s comments about her son.
There are also allegations of bullying against Markle that first appeared in The Times newspaper leading up to the interview.
Buckingham Palace, which did not comment on the interview, said in an unprecedented move that it would investigate the bullying allegations, adding that it was “very concerned.”
In response to the report, a Markle spokeswoman said she was “saddened by this latest assault on her character, especially as someone who has been the target of bullying herself.”
The British Prince Harry and his wife Markle with their newborn son Archie in Windsor Castle. Markle says questions have been raised about the color of Archie’s skin and that is why he was not given the title of prince [File: Dominic Lipinski/ AFP]‘Turning point’
Markle said people within the royal institution have not only not protected her from malicious claims, but have lied to protect others.
“It wasn’t until we got married and everything really started to deteriorate that I started to understand that not only was I not being protected, but that they were willing to lie to protect other members of the family,” said Markle.
“There’s the family and then there’s the people who run the facility, that’s two different things and it’s important to be able to divide that into compartments because the Queen, for example, has always been great to me.”
Markle denied a newspaper article that she made Kate Middleton, Duchess of Cambridge and Prince William’s wife, cry before the wedding, saying it was a turning point in her relations with the media.
“That was a turning point,” said Markle. Asked if she had made Middleton cry, Markle replied, “The reverse has happened.”
“A few days before the wedding, she (Kate) was somewhere upset, regarding yes, the matter was correct about the flower girl dresses, and it made me cry. And it really hurt me, ”said Markle.
Markle told Winfrey that she had been naive before her wedding and did not realize what she was getting married to when she joined the British Royal Family.
“I will say I took it up naively because I didn’t know much about the royal family,” said Markle.