Prince Harry and Meghan Markle (also known as the Duke and Duchess of Sussex) have officially broken away from Britain’s royal family and will not come back to life as working royals, Buckingham Palace said in a statement on Friday.
‘Following talks with the Duke,’ the statement said, ‘the Queen wrote to confirm that it was not possible to continue with the responsibilities and duties associated with a life of public service.
When Harry and Meghan ‘stepped back’ last year as working members of the royal family, so that they could earn salaries for their work and have more privacy, the queen granted a review period of one year. The couple could test their new life but still have their old job if they want to.
In Friday’s statement, Buckingham Palace (and thus the Queen) made it clear that the review period was over and that Harry and Meghan were not officially ‘the firm’.
“Although everyone is sad about their decision, the duke and duchess remain very beloved members of the family.”
The palace also said on Friday that as a result of this official separation, the queen would take away the royal protection she had previously granted to the Sussexes and deprive Harry – a ten-year veteran – of his honorary military appointments.
The statement said that the protection and positions as honorary heads of military corps “would be returned to her majesty before being redistributed among working members of the royal family.”
It has always been part of the official plan agreed upon last year. Harry and Meghan knew they would lose the formal ties with these organizations if they decided to secede from life as working royals forever.
A Sussex spokesman told BuzzFeed News on Friday that they would support their former protection in a private capacity.
“As is evident from their work over the past year, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex remain committed to their duty and service to the United Kingdom and around the world and offer their continued support to the organizations they have represented, regardless of the official “We can all live a service life. Service is universal,” the spokesman said.