Timing of Meghan and Harry’s relaunch is ‘spiteful and will trigger MORE stress for Charles and Kate as they recover’
PRINCE Harry and Meghan Markle’s rebrand is “spiteful” and will “trigger more stress” for King Charles and Princess Kate as they recover, a royal expert has claimed.
The couple last night launched Sussex.com to replace their Archewell.com website - using their royal titles and crest.
Their fresh move to rebrand as Sussex.com comes after the Queen banned the couple from using 'SussexRoyal' after they stepped away from royal duty four years ago.
The Queen ordered the Sussexes to mothball it in the January 2020 exit settlement, when Meghan and Harry stopped being senior members of the royal family.
Now, royal expert Angela Levin believes this will add unneeded stress on King Charles, who is resting after his cancer diagnosis, and Princess Kate, who is recovering from abdominal surgery.
Speaking to The Sun, she said: “It’s the most appalling timing. This is not the first time they’ve done this.
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“They did this sort of thing before when they went ahead with their Oprah interview while Prince Philip was dying in hospital.
“I don’t think it's a coincidence. It's their way of trying to crush the royal family down.
“Of course this is going to trigger more stress for Charles and William.
“Harry knows very much that his grandmother, the late Queen, actually got Harry to say very firmly that he would not use his titles and the crest for commercial gain.
“This whole thing is for commercial gain. He's kicking them while their down.”
However, source close to the couple today defended the move.
They said: “Prince Harry and Meghan are the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. That is a fact. It is their surname and family name.”
It comes after Prince Harry met with his father for half an hour at Clarence House on Tuesday, in their first face-to-face encounter for 16 months.
He had flown thousands of miles from his California home to be at the King's side following his cancer shock.
However, he only saw his father for 30 minutes before he flew to Sandringham for rest following his diagnosis.
And he did not meet with William following years of attacks by Harry on Oprah, Netflix and in his autobiography Spare.
King Charles has been seen smiling and waving as he arrived back in London for more cancer treatment after recovering at Sandringham.
The monarch was accompanied by Queen Camilla and looked in good spirits.
Visitors to the new site see a notice that reads: "This site was established in 2020 and sets out the work streams of Prince Harry and Meghan, The Duke and Duchess of Sussex prior to their move to the United States."
MEGXIT TERMS
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry announced on January 8, 2020, they would be stepping down as 'senior' members of the Royal Family.
On January 18 it was announced that Harry and Meghan would “no longer be working members of Britain’s Royal Family”, and would not use their “Royal Highness” titles.
A Palace spokeswoman said the couple would no longer receive public money and that they would repay the £2.4million cost of refurbishing their cottage — Frogmore — in Windsor, Berks.
The following day, Harry said in a heartfelt speech: “Our hope was to continue serving the Queen, the Commonwealth, and my military associations without public funding. Unfortunately, that wasn’t possible.”
The Duke of Sussex said he had found the “love and happiness I had hoped for all my life” with Meghan.
A link then takes the pair back to Sussex.com.
This is the first rebrand the couple have undergone since they launched Archewell in October 2020.
They had previously used Sussex Royal setting up a website and social media profiles.
Megxit terms mean the couple can use their Duke and Duchess titles but cannot use HRH in their new financial endeavours.
The Duchess of Sussex worked closely with the College of Arms in London to create the design, Kensington Palace said at the time it was first revealed after their royal wedding in May 2018.
In September last year, it was revealed the couple were planning to launch new projects.
It's their way of trying to crush the royal family down. Of course this is going to trigger more stress for Charles and William.
Angela Levin
On Sussex.com, biographies on Harry and Meghan include the line: "The Duke and Duchess are committed to their mission: Show Up, Do Good.
"They hold the value that charitable work should not simply be a handout, but rather a hand held."
The site also reads: "The Office of Prince Harry and Meghan, The Duke and Duchess of Sussex is shaping the future through business and philanthropy.
It comes as...
- Charles has returned to London for his cancer treatment
- Prince Harry and Meghan Markle ditched Archewell and launched slick new website
- The new site may be SHUT DOWN by the Royal Family
- Their rebrand is ‘cashing in on the same Royal connections they hate so much’
"This includes: The Archewell Foundation, Archwell Productions, patronages, ventures, and organizations which receive the support of the couple, individually and/or together."
Prince Harry's bio describes him as "a humanitarian, military veteran, mental health advocate, and environmental campaigner".
It reads: "He has dedicated his adult life to advancing causes that he is passionate about and that advance permanent change for people and places."
Harry and Meghan's business flops
- Meghan had her upcoming animated series Pearl chucked out by Netflix while in the development stage.
- Then 42-year-old was said to have been “uncharacteristically quiet”, following the loss of her £18million Spotify deal in June last year.
- While Spare initially sold a staggering number of copies demand soon dwindled and a year on its popularity has plummeted with major retailers slashing prices in half.
- Meanwhile, their Netflix documentary also took a hit and the duke and duchess are believed to have been paid only half of their reported £78million contract.
- The pair were poked fun at by comedian Jo Koy at the Golden Globes for “being paid millions by Netflix for doing nothing”.
- Harry’s series, Heart of Invictus, shedding light on the Olympic-style games he started for wounded ex-service competitors also flopped.
- Archewell figures in December last year revealed a hole in the accounts after it received almost £9million less in donations than in a previous year.
The site also describes his time in the Army, names the organisations he's founded, and that he's a New York Times Bestselling author after writing Spare.
Meghan's bio says she's "a feminist and champion of human rights and gender equity".
READ MORE SUN STORIES
The website says: "Her lifelong advocacy for women and girls remains a constant thread in her humanitarian and business ventures."
It goes on to say she "has been named one of the most influential women in the world", had a leading role in show Suits and has served in roles like the UN Women’s Advocate for Women’s Political Participation.
