Prince Harry and Meghan have officially been downgraded from their status on the palace website.
Initially, they appeared to have been mysteriously hidden from the royal family website, only to reappear within an hour following online backlash. Previously, they were positioned between Princess Alexandra and Prince Andrew, but now they are listed together beneath the Duke of York. Although the Sussexes stepped down as working royals in 2020, they remained listed on the royal family website four years later.
Recently, their pictures and biographies briefly vanished from the site, only to be replaced with a significantly smaller joint biography at the bottom of the page, below Prince Andrew. The revised entry states that they have stepped back as working royals, with only a couple of short paragraphs on each of them.
This update coincided with Prince Andrew's own biography being shortened, marking a notable fall from grace following the Epstein and Queen Elizabeth's decision to strip him of his military affiliations and royal patronages. Despite growing public discontent over the continued inclusion of the Sussexes on the website, Buckingham Palace has evaded questions regarding their presence, citing ongoing updates to the site.
Speculation suggests that the palace's press office may have been gradually updating the website following Queen Elizabeth's passing, intending to address the issue in due course. Previously, Harry's profile described him as fifth in line to the throne and the younger son of King and Diana, Princess of Wales, with a detailed 2,700-word biography covering his early life, education, and military career.
Meghan's profile, slightly shorter at around 1,300 words, highlighted her education, career as an actress, and charitable engagements during her time as a royal. However, the couple now share a joint biography, featuring a single picture of them together on a South African beach, with a combined word count of just 577. Notably, references to Meghan's activism and humanitarian work have been omitted, portraying her solely as an actress and blogger before marriage. They are the only married members of the royal family without individual profiles on the website.
Social media users reacted to the changes, with some expressing satisfaction at Harry and Meghan's removal from the website, citing their departure from royal duties as justification. Others noted the couple's demotion on the website and speculated about the implications of the reduced content on their biography. Despite attempts by some to frame the changes as part of an agreement with Prince Charles and Buckingham Palace, mainstream media outlets, including Yahoo, reported it as a clear downgrade. The joint page now includes a timeline outlining the couple's desire to leave, prompting speculation about potential consequences for any further missteps.
