MEG BOMBSHELL
Meghan Markle claims Archie was banned from being prince after royals questioned how ‘dark skinned’ he would be
MEGHAN Markle said Archie wasn't made a prince after "concerns and conversations" about "how dark" his skin would be when he was born.
The Duchess of Sussex said there had been conversations with Prince Harry and a "family" member about their unborn son and what colour his skin would be - and "what that would mean or look like".
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But the 39-year-old declined to say who had started those conversations, saying it would be "damaging" for them.
Prince Harry said he would "never share" the full details of the discussion but that he was asked at the start of his relationship with Meghan, how dark the skin of their children might be.
But Oprah Winfrey today revealed it was not the Queen or the Duke of Edinburgh who made the comment about Archie's skin.
She told CBS This Morning: "He did not share the identity with me but he wanted to make sure I knew, and if I had an opportunity to share it, that it was not his grandmother or grandfather that were part of those conversations.
"He did not tell me who was a part of those conversations."
Speaking to Oprah, Meghan said the concerns had been raised at the same time that the future parents were told Archie would not receive security as he was not a prince.
She said: "All the grandeur around this stuff is not really important to me.
"But in those months when I was pregnant, all around same time: we have in tandem he won’t be given security, a title and also concerns and conversations about how dark his skin might be when he’s born."
Oprah was left stunned and replied: "What? There is a conversation…hold on. Hold up. Hold up. Stop right now.
It comes as...
- Meghan broke down as she revealed 'I didn't want to live anymore'
- Meghan claimed Kate made HER cry in row over flower girl dress
- Harry and Meghan married three days before their wedding at Windsor Castle
- Pregnant Meghan revealed she is expecting a GIRL
- The 39-year-old told Oprah the Queen was 'always wonderful to me'
- Prince Harry said his brother is 'trapped' in the Royal Family
- A body language expert revealed Harry 'suppressed anger' when talking about being hurt by his family
- Meghan was apparently left gutted when the Queen would not let her and Harry live in a wing at Windsor Castle
- Archie's favourite word is 'hydrate' the proud parents revealed
"There's a conversation with you?" Meghan said: "With Harry."
Oprah went on: "About how dark your baby is going to be?"
Meghan replied: "Potentially, and what that would mean or look like."
Oprah then gasped: "Whoa."
Asked whether there were concerns that her child would be “too brown” and that would be a problem, Meghan said: “If that is the assumption you are making, that is a pretty safe one.”
Prince Harry confirmed he had been involved in the conversations but said he would never share the details.
He said: "At the time it was awkward but I was a bit shocked.";
Oprah had introduced the interview - confirming that "no subject is off limits" and that Meghan had not been paid for the chat.
Meghan reveals to Oprah concerns were raised by royals over Archie's skin colour
Oprah: You certainly must have had some conversations with Harry about it and have your own suspicions as to why they didn't want to make Archie a prince. What are those thoughts, why do you think that is? Do you think it's because of his race? I know that's a loaded question.
Meghan: I can give you an honest answer. But in those months when I was pregnant, all around same time: we have in tandem the conversation of he won’t be given security, he's not going to be given a title and also concerns and conversations about how dark his skin might be when he’s born.
Oprah: What? Who, who is having that conversation with you? What?
Meghan: So, um,
Oprah: There is a conversation - hold up
Meghan: there are several conversations about it, with Harry
Oprah: there was a conversation with you about how dark your baby is going to be?
Meghan: Potentially, and what that would mean or look like
Oprah: And you're not going to tell me who had the conversation?
Meghan: I think that would be very damaging to them.
And the chatshow queen said: “How do they explain to you that your son, the great grandson of the Queen, wasn’t going to be a prince?
“You certainly must have had conversations with Harry about it and had your own suspicions as to why they didn’t want to make Archie a prince.”
Meghan replied: "That was when they were saying they didn't want him to be a prince or a princess."
Under rules brought in by George V in 1917, only the children and grandchildren of a sovereign have the automatic right to be a prince or princess, and use the HRH title.
Archie is the great-grandchild of the Queen, but will be a grandchild of the ruling sovereign when Charles becomes King, and thus would then be entitled to the titles.
Under George V's declaration, of the Queen's great-grandchildren only Prince George is actually entitled to be a prince because he is in the direct line of succession to the throne as the eldest son of Prince William, the eldest son of the Prince of Wales.
However, ahead of George's birth, the Queen stepped in to issue letters patent, ensuring that Kate and William's children would have the prince and princess titles.
They are the children of a future monarch, but Archie is not.
Archie could have been styled using one of Harry's lesser titles, Earl of Dumbarton, as a courtesy, when he was born the couple announced that he would instead be known as Archie Mountbatten-Windsor - and it was widely reported this was to ensure he had a more normal upbringing.
However, Meghan said of the lack of title: “It was not our decision to make.”
During the bombshell interview, Meghan broke down in tears as she revealed she told Prince Harry she "didn’t want to be alive anymore".
She added she had suicidal thoughts in the shocking tell-all interview with Oprah.
The Duchess said she begged for help from the Firm after struggling with her mental health - saying it was her husband who "saved" her.
But in the explosive interview, Meghan said she had been told she would not be able to seek help as it "wouldn't be good for the institution."
Breaking down in tears, pregnant Meghan said: "I just didn't see a solution.
"I didn't want to be alive anymore."
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As the interview began, Meghan said she grew up not knowing much about the Royal Family, adding: "I will say I went into it naively."
When probed by Oprah if she was "silent or silenced", she replied "the latter".
She even revealed she and Prince Harry married three days before their ceremony at Windsor Castle in 2018.
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She said she didn't understand what the job was - and joked she had never looked her husband Prince Harry up online.
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She added that she had not romanticised the job but admitted all she knew about the Royal Family was what she read in fairy tales.
The bombshell revelations come amid fears Meghan may never return to Britain after the chat.
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