Queen Elizabeth reportedly rejected Meghan Markle and Prince Harry’s request to live at Windsor Castle after their wedding at St George’s Chapel on May 19, 2018. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex moved to Frogmore Cottage in 2019.
A royal author claims Queen Elizabeth turned down Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s request to live at Windsor Castle
Talking about the living arrangement, royal author Hugo Vickers said, as quoted by OK! Magazine, “There are empty bedrooms and suites in the private apartments which the Sussexes may have had their eye on, or perhaps some former living quarters in the castle grounds converted into other things. But I can see how it might not be entirely appropriate to have a young family living there.”
However, the Queen, who died in September 2022 at the age of 96, chose Frogmore Cottage as the Sussexes’ residence instead of Windsor Castle. Meghan and Harry moved there in 2019 ahead of Archie’s birth and left in 2020 after stepping back as senior members of the royal family.
The cottage was reportedly a residence Queen Elizabeth cherished, with a royal insider saying it was “a big deal” for the late monarch to share it with the Sussexes. Royal expert Katie Nicholl wrote in her book The New Royals that “the cottage was a big deal” as the monarch’s “entrance into the gardens is right next to their cottage.” Royal expert Katie Nicholl revealed in The New Royals that Frogmore Cottage held significance for the late Queen, as her entrance to the gardens was located right beside the residence.
Nicholl added, “It is essentially her backyard, her solitude, and her privacy. She was giving that up in gifting Harry and Meghan Frogmore Cottage. We all thought it was very big of her. She said, ‘I hope they’ll respect it.'”
Prince Harry also spoke fondly of Frogmore Cottage in his 2023 memoir Spare, writing that he and Meghan “loved that place” from the moment they arrived and felt they were “destined to live there.”
After stepping away from royal duties in 2020, the couple relocated to Southern California, where they are raising their children, Prince Archie, 7, and Princess Lilibet, 5. The pair have since maintained a separate life in the U.S. However, Harry and Meghan recently reunited with King Charles and Queen Camilla for a meeting, reports Cosmopolitan.
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