Since her introduction into the royal family in 2017, reports about Meghan Markle’s relationships with her British in-laws have been widely circulated, though few have ever been confirmed.
One member of the monarchy who has been the subject of a number of stories in relation to the duchess is her stepmother-in-law, Queen Camilla.
From allegations that she made an insensitive joke about the hair texture of Meghan and Harry’s future children to reports that she assigned Meghan a crude nickname after splitting from the monarchy, Camilla has been the focus of a number of speculative Meghan-related stories.
While reports of this kind are plentiful, what Camilla has said on the record about Meghan amounts to very little. However, the commentary the queen has made has marked milestone moments in the duchess’ royal story.
Here, Newsweek looks at everything Queen Camilla has said about Meghan Markle on the record.
Meghan and Camilla: A Backstory
Prince Harry introduced Meghan Markle to Queen Camilla at the same time he introduced her to his father, King Charles, in the early stages of their relationship.
In his memoir, Spare, Harry recounted that his relationship with his stepmother had always been distant, and at the Clarence House introduction to his new girlfriend, he told Meghan not to curtsy to the then-future queen.
The prince told readers that the first meeting went well, with the animal-loving Camilla being touched by Meghan’s description of her rescue dogs, Guy and Bogart.
Harry revealed little else about Meghan’s relationship with his stepmother in his book, however, he did reference Meghan’s reaching out to Camilla when she began to struggle with negative tabloid reporting.
“Meg, meanwhile, reached out to Camilla, who tried to counsel her by saying this was just what the press always did to newcomers, that it would all pass in due time, that Camilla had been the bad guy once,” he wrote, alluding to the unhelpfulness of the advice given.
Meghan did not comment about Camilla in her interview with Oprah Winfrey in 2021 or the Sussex’s Netflix docuseries in 2022.
The duchess and queen were last photographed together at the state funeral for Queen Elizabeth II in September 2022. Meghan did not attend Charles and Camilla’s coronation celebrations in May.
America’s Loss Is Our Gain
When Meghan Markle and Prince Harry’s engagement announcement was made in November 2017, Camilla (then Duchess of Cornwall) made her first on-the-record comment about her future stepdaughter-in-law.
The day after the public announcement, Camilla told news cameras that she was “absolutely thrilled” that Harry and Meghan were marrying.
“It’s brilliant, and as I said, America’s loss is our gain, and we’re all absolutely delighted,” she said. “As you can see, they’re so happy, and sometimes, you know, in a climate where we’re surrounded by a lot of bad news, it’s a real joy to have a bit of good news for once. And, as I’ve said before, we’re delighted.”
We All Wondered Whatever Would Happen Next
Camilla’s next comment regarding Meghan was made during a visit to a British news station in the days after the royal wedding.
Prior to the May 18 wedding day at St George’s Chapel, Windsor, Meghan had faced a barrage of media scrutiny after her father, Thomas Markle, had staged paparazzi photographs and suffered a heart attack, being ultimately absent on the big day.
In his place, Meghan was walked partially down the aisle by King Charles.
In a comment made during her station visit, reported by royal rota member for the Daily Mail, Rebecca English, Camilla appeared to hint at the unpredictability of the pre-wedding drama.
“It was such a lovely day. Just everything went right. We all wondered whatever would happen next, and then everything went right,” she said. “The only thing is that we are all losing our voices now.”
“It’s nice to have something that is uplifting rather than depressing,” she continued. “Everything was just perfect, including the weather, which couldn’t have been better. It was a beautiful day.”
