Prince William Wants to Strip Meghan Markle and Prince Harry of ‘Royal Highness’ Titles: Report

Prince William reportedly doesn’t have any intentions of playing nice with Prince Harry and Meghan Markle when it comes to their “HRH” titles.

William, 42, wants to strip Harry, 40, and Meghan, 43, of their “Royal Highness” titles when he becomes king, sources revealed to The Daily Beast. The issue was brought to the forefront after Jamie Kern Lima shared a gift Meghan had sent her during an episode of her podcast. Meghan gave Jamie, 47, a basket of “homemade strawberry sauce” and she signed the card accompanying the gift, “With the Compliments of HRH The Duchess of Sussex.”

In 2020, Meghan and Harry promised the late Queen Elizabeth II that they would stop using their “Royal Highness” titles when they took a step back from their positions in the royal family and moved to America.

While the former Suits star’s signature has drawn criticism from royal experts, insiders close to Meghan argued that she wasn’t breaking any rules because she wasn’t using the signature for commercial purposes.

“Harry and Meghan retain their HRH titles; however, by agreement, they do not use them for commercial purposes. While they do not publicly use ‘HRH,’ this was a personal gift, and their titles remain,” the source explained.

However, a former courtier with the royals called the explanation “complete rubbish” and said that the terms of using the HRH titles were settled when Queen Elizabeth II, King Charles, Prince William and Prince Harry met shortly after Meghan and Harry announced their intention to step back from their royal duties. The former courtier said that the final decision “made it clear they had agreed not to use the HRH titles at all, ever, in any capacity.”

The royal website also published a statement when Harry and Meghan made their decision and it still states, “The Sussexes will not use their HRH titles as they are no longer working members of the Royal Family.”

“Charles might be happy to put up with this, but William won’t,” the source continued. “He loathes and despises Harry and Meghan with every bone in his body. He believes they have betrayed everything the family stands for and the idea that they are using their royal status as a calling card will enrage him.”

A friend of Prince William also chimed in on the situation and told the outlet, “Charles has completely lost control. It’s apparent that Harry and Meghan have every intention of making his final years a misery, just as he feared they would. Meghan using her HRH exposes how weak and enfeebled he is. She knows he won’t do anything. There is no way King William will stand for this. The titles will simply be removed when he is king. A way will be found.”

Harry and William have been at odds for years now, with rumors first starting in 2018 when Harry allegedly became irritated with William for not being welcoming enough to Meghan. In their 2022 Netflix docuseries, Harry & Meghan, Harry claimed that it was “terrifying” to have his brother “scream and shout” at him after they decided to step back from their positions.

“The saddest part of it was this wedge created between myself and my brother, so that he’s now on the institution’s side,” Harry said. “Part of that I get, I understand, right, that’s his inheritance. So to some extent, it’s already ingrained in him that part of his responsibility is the survivability and continuation of this institution.”