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Secret to why ‘commoner’ Princess Mary ‘succeeded’ where Meghan ‘failed’ & the reason Duchess ‘couldn’t hack’ royal life
And, according to royal expert Jennie Bond, Mary has used her position of power in the right way
AS Princess Mary makes her first moves as Queen of Denmark, it’s hard not to draw comparisons between her royal journey with Meghan Markle’s.
After all, both women are 'commoners' who met their royal husbands serendipitously, they both had their own careers (Meghan an actress and Mary in advertising and marketing) and they have both used their platforms to champion good causes.
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However, according to royal expert Jennie Bond, Princess Mary has succeeded in an area Meghan failed, and this comes down to “personality and a level of maturity”.
She explained: “You would certainly have thought that Princess Mary would have provided a template for Meghan becoming a royal princess and make a success of it.
"They were both strong, independent women when they met their husbands, but Mary made a real effort to be a royal. She had a basic understanding of how the monarchy works, which was quite a shock I think to Meghan.”
On Sunday, Princess Mary, 52, ascended the throne alongside her husband Prince Frederik after his mother, Queen Margrethe II, 83, made the surprise announcement she would be abdicating during a speech on New Year’s Eve.
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Mary, a mum of four, has often been compared to the Princess of Wales for their dedication to family life, down to earth nature and love of fashion.
According to Jennie, the new Queen actually has far more in common with Meghan, 42 - but unlike Mary, Meghan just “couldn’t hack” royal life.
Speaking exclusively to Fabulous, Jennie said: “They have so much in common.
"She moved from her native Australia to Denmark, and it must have been quite a jolt for Mary, just like moving to the UK was for Meghan - and yet Mary still made a real effort to succeed.
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“She learned Danish, which was really difficult. She seemed to understand the hierarchy of royal life, and although she was a successful career woman in her own right, she understood her place in the royal family.
"And of course, unlike Meghan, she knew that one day, she would be top dog with all the clout that Meghan probably wanted for herself.
“I think it was a real shock for Meghan to understand that she and Harry would always play second fiddle to William and Catherine.
"Quite why Mary managed to understand and adapt to a different culture and country and Meghan simply couldn’t hack it probably comes down to personality and a level of maturity.
“It’s a great shame because I actually think a happy Meghan Markle would have been a valuable addition to a modern British monarchy.”
You would certainly have thought that Princess Mary would have provided a template for Meghan becoming a royal princess and make a success of it
Jennie Bond
Princess Mary met Prince Frederik, 55, in a pub in her hometown Sydney in 2000, with Mary reportedly having no idea who he was.
Like Harry and Meghan, who met through a mutual friend, the couple enjoyed a long distance relationship before getting engaged in 2003. They married in May 2004 and welcomed Prince Christian a year later. Princess Isabella arrived in 2007 followed by twins Prince Vincent and Princess Josephine in 2011.
Like Meghan, Princess Mary has used her royal platform to raise awareness of political issues as well as good causes.
She is a champion for LGBTQ+ causes and used money they received as wedding gifts to set up The Mary Foundation, which tackles domestic violence and bullying.
She is also patron of the World Health Organisation and also the United Nations Population Fund to help promote better and safer maternal health in developing countries.
And according to Jennie, Mary has used her position of power in the right way.
Jennie said: “Princess Mary has shown that she’s a modern woman and has proved that you can have a voice even within the royal family.
"She has addressed WorldPride in Copenhagen and is an advocate for LGBQT+ causes. She understands you just have to use your platform in the right place and at the right time. Unlike Meghan who hijacked William and Kate's royal foundation for her own cause.
“Mary remains close to her family in Australia - her sisters were bridesmaids at her wedding - so for her it must have been even harder to move so far away to a new life.
"Meghan, by Harry’s own account, found a ‘new family’ here in the UK after her estrangement from almost her entire US family, so you might have thought she would embrace it, but that is clearly very far from the truth.”
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Mary is officially the world's first Australia-born queen - but didn't have a coronation.
Instead the Danish prime minister proclaimed the new monarch on the balcony of the Danish palace in Copenhagen, following a royal tradition since the early 1900s.
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