Meghan Markle Said She Gave Up Her Whole Life for the Royals

cape town, south africa september 25 uk out for 28 days meghan, duchess of sussex visits the african not for profit organisation mothers2mothers during the royal tour of south africa on september 25, 2019 in cape town, south africa the organisation trains and employs women living with hiv as frontline health workers across eight african nations photo by poolsamir husseinwireimage

(Image credit: Pool/Samir Hussein)

published 12 August 2020

According to new Meghan Markle and Prince Harry biography Finding Freedom, Meghan told a friend she "gave up [her] entire life" for the royal family.
Speaking after Meghan and Harry stepped down as senior royals, the Duchess of Sussex said she had been "willing to do whatever it takes," adding, "But here we are. It's very sad."
Finding Freedom, by royal correspondents Omid Scobie and Carolyn Durand, was published yesterday.

One of the saddest details to emerge from Finding Freedom, Omid Scobie and Carolyn Durand's biography of Meghan Markle and Prince Harry, is just how terrible Meghan felt about how her royal life turned out, and just how hard she tried to make it work. According to Scobie and Durand, in a quote from the book published by the Independent, Meghan spoke "tearfully" to a friend in March, the Sussexes' final month as working royals. "I gave up my entire life for this family. I was willing to do whatever it takes," Meghan reportedly said. "But here we are. It’s very sad."

Finding Freedom

Harry, meanwhile, was deeply frustrated by the lack of support the couple received from the royal family—very understandably, given the onslaught of racist media coverage Meghan was subjected to. An inside source told Scobie and Durand that Harry felt "there were so many occasions" when the royals could have supported the Sussexes, or spoken out about the vicious media coverage they were receiving. Harry believed his family "could have helped them, stood up for them, backed them up, and never did."

One member of the royal family who did support the Sussexes, according to Finding Freedom: the Queen herself. The monarch "had always tried to be sensitive to her grandson’s needs," Scobie and Durand write. "That one sentiment meant a lot to Harry."

Emily Dixon is a British journalist who’s contributed to CNN, Teen Vogue, Time, Glamour, The Guardian, Wonderland, The Big Roundtable, Bust, and more, on everything from mental health to fashion to political activism to feminist zine collectives. She’s also a committed Beyoncé, Kacey Musgraves, and Tracee Ellis Ross fan, an enthusiastic but terrible ballet dancer, and a proud Geordie lass.