Prince Harry to meet Queen Elizabeth over plans to shift royal role

Prince Harry and Duchess of Sussex Meghan Markle with Prince William and his wife Catherine, the Duchess of Cambridge, in 2018. File picture: Chris Jackson/Reuters

Prince Harry and Duchess of Sussex Meghan Markle with Prince William and his wife Catherine, the Duchess of Cambridge, in 2018. File picture: Chris Jackson/Reuters

Published Jan 13, 2020

Share

London - Britain's Prince Harry is expected to meet his

grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II, and other senior royals on Monday to

discuss his plans to "step back" from royal duties.

Harry and his wife Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, made a surprise

announcement on Wednesday that they will seek a lower profile, build

financial independence and divide their time between Britain and

North America as they "carve out a progressive new role."

The queen will hold talks with her grandson at her Sandringham estate

in eastern England on the future roles of Harry, 35, and Meghan, 38,

the BBC and other British media quoted royal sources as saying.

Buckingham Palace and Harry and Meghan have not confirmed plans for a

meeting.

Many commentators and British tabloid newspapers have criticized the

couple's plans.

View this post on Instagram

“After many months of reflection and internal discussions, we have chosen to make a transition this year in starting to carve out a progressive new role within this institution. We intend to step back as ‘senior’ members of the Royal Family and work to become financially independent, while continuing to fully support Her Majesty The Queen. It is with your encouragement, particularly over the last few years, that we feel prepared to make this adjustment. We now plan to balance our time between the United Kingdom and North America, continuing to honour our duty to The Queen, the Commonwealth, and our patronages. This geographic balance will enable us to raise our son with an appreciation for the royal tradition into which he was born, while also providing our family with the space to focus on the next chapter, including the launch of our new charitable entity. We look forward to sharing the full details of this exciting next step in due course, as we continue to collaborate with Her Majesty The Queen, The Prince of Wales, The Duke of Cambridge and all relevant parties. Until then, please accept our deepest thanks for your continued support.” - The Duke and Duchess of Sussex For more information, please visit sussexroyal.com (link in bio) Image © PA

A post shared by The Duke and Duchess of Sussex(@sussexroyal) on Jan 8, 2020 at 10:33am PST

The criticism intensified on Friday after the palace confirmed that

US-born former actress Meghan had flown to Canada, where she had

lived for several years while filming the popular television drama

"Suits."

Harry and Meghan also said they plan to restrict media access and

withdraw from a rota system for media coverage of the royal family.

Their announcement came after they had denounced intrusive and

inaccurate media reporting, as well as the vitriol directed toward

them on social media, including racist attacks against Meghan, whose

mother is black.

Harry and Meghan had returned earlier last week from a six-week break

in Canada, a member of the Commonwealth, with their 8-month-old son

Archie.

dpa

Related Topics: