Queen Elizabeth 'Furious' at Harry and Meghan for Taking Her Most Precious Belonging

Report:Although Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have often spoken of a warm relationship with the late Queen Elizabeth, palace insiders paint a different picture, especially when it came to their departure from royal life and the controversy that followed.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex made the decision to step down from their senior royal roles in 2020, just as their son, Archie, was a year old. In 2021, they welcomed their daughter, Princess Lilibet, but their actions around this time left the Queen deeply hurt. According to sources, the Queen felt it was “cruel” that Meghan had pushed Harry into a position where he had to choose between his wife and his family.

The Queen's anger was reportedly compounded by the couple's desire to define their own royal roles, as well as the damaging accusations of racism made against the royal family. However, the most upsetting blow came when Harry and Meghan chose to name their daughter after the Queen's childhood nickname, "Lilibet."

Royal biographer Robert Hardman shared that a palace staff member recalled the Queen being “as angry as I’d ever seen her” after the couple's announcement that they had been granted permission to use the cherished name. The Queen, visibly hurt, confided in her aides, saying, “I don’t own the palaces, I don’t own the paintings, the only thing I own is my name. And now they’ve taken that.”

This deeply personal moment marked a breaking point for the Queen. When she later offered her congratulations to Harry and Meghan on the birth of Lilibet, she was careful not to confirm any prior approval for the name. According to sources, it was a deliberate refusal to acknowledge their claim, calling it “another one of their lies.”

The Queen’s feelings were clear: the name, a lifelong symbol of her identity, was something that she alone held dear — and now, it had been taken from her.