Duchess Meghan and Prince Harry single-handedly managed to send the modern world into meltdown on Thursday when they made the jarring announcement that they would be stepping down as senior members of the royal family.
The announcement left the masses shell-shocked – so rare is it for a royal family member to make such a dramatic move that many likened it to a full-blown abdication.
Yes, this sort of thing happens in the royal family once in a blue moon, it seems. So of course it was only natural for people to immediately jump to their own conclusions.
Said conclusions effectively resulted in the formation of two firm camps – team Meghan and team royal family.
Royal watchers have jumped into two firm camps – team Meghan and team royal.
(Getty)Yes, there was no denying the slew of criticism and outpouring of anger against Meghan as she and Harry made the announcement that they would now be splitting their time between North America and the UK, working towards their own “financial independance”.
“Hand back the 20 million the British tax payer forked out for your wedding, then maybe fund your own security bills in Canada….just saying,” one angered person wrote on the Sussexes’ official Instagram announcement.
“Working on financial independence at 35? Congrats. Welcome to adulthood,” another said.
As for the trending hashtag, #Megxit, which swept the internet in an instant… well the phrase itself gives you a good sense of how the public received the news.
But on the other side were a number of supportive Meghan fans, who welcomed her and Harry’s decision to step back.
“UK media/haters tried to destroy this woman & their union. However, it only made them stronger!” Wrote one.
“They doing what they need to do for THEIR lives…they don’t live for the royal family, they live for THEM,” said another.
The Sussexes face a slew of opinions – but are they really necessary in the great scheme of things?
(Getty)Both sides of the camp had their own reasons for voicing their opinions – but when you look at Harry and Meghan’s decision as a bigger picture, one might tend to reconsider whether there should even be a debate at all.
Firstly, it’s important to remember that Prince Harry is sixth in line to the throne. That means that even if all hell breaks loose, there are still quite a few heirs who will take up the helm before he does.
In fact, Harry is closer to the latter end of the top ten heirs – the ninth and tenth of whom are none other than Princesses Beatrice and Princess Eugenie.
Interestingly both Princesses lead the sort of private lives Harry and Meghan appear to desire, if their statement is anything to go by.
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Indeed Princess Beatrice and Eugenie have never been subject to the level of pressure Harry and Meghan have been put under.
Instead, both Princesses have been able to lead relatively normal lives (that is, as normal as a wealthy aristocrat can get), with Eugenie even being famed for having a normal job at an art gallery, as well as having her own personal Instagram account (shock horror!).
So if Harry and Meghan are to step back as “senior” royals, all they will really be giving up is their lack of independence to do a lot of the things we non-blue blooded folk tend to take for granted.
Yes, their announcement seems dramatic, and yes, the fact that they did so without fully firming up details with the Palace is extreme, but when all is said and done, Harry and Meghan will ultimately still be supportive of the Queen, they’ll still be doing their charitable work, and they’ll certainly still be in the spotlight.
Harry and Meghan’s desire to continue working with charities has been clear from day dot.
(Getty)Another important point to note is that the situation with Harry and Meghan is in no way new.
In fact, no less than four royals before them have stepped back from their roles in recent history.
Indeed Harry’s own mother Princess Diana revealed in 1993 that she would reduce her official engagements in order to live a more private life.
Sarah Ferguson, the ex-wife of Prince Andrew also significantly reduced her work as a royal after the breakdown of their marriage. But today, she continues to regularly attend charitable events supported by the royal family.
Prince Andrew also infamously stepped down from public duties just a few months ago in the wake of the Jeffrey Epstein scandal, where his relationship with the convicted sex offender was thrown into question.
While Andrew’s case is a little different, there’s still no denying that a dramatic move like stepping back from some, or even all of one’s royal duties is certainly not foreign to within the House of Windsor.
And so, with this in mind, you have to wonder whether there’s really any point in taking sides in the Harry and Meghan debacle when, at the end of the day, we’ll still see them carry out their hearts desires (many of which are entrenched in charitable efforts) like we always have.
