In the summer of 2021, just a few months after Prince Harry and Meghan Markle rocked the Royal Family with their Oprah interview, another bombshell was to come.
The Sussexes welcomed their second child, Lilibet, in June, and their decision to name their first daughter after Queen Elizabeth II’s personal nickname reportedly left her so angry she “threw her newspaper” to the floor.
Royal author’s new book, The Windsor Legacy: A Royal Dynasty of Secrets, Scandal and Survival, claims the anger was more about how Her Majesty found out the news, reading it in the papers along with the rest of the world.
In his book, he alleges that, despite claims at the time she had approved the use of the name, “A Palace source has a different version of events, which is that the Queen first learned of Lilibet’s name from the morning press, and was so incensed at the affront that she threw the paper to the floor, startling her staff.”
However, a spokesperson for the Sussexes rebuked this, sharing in a statement, “The duke spoke with his family in advance of the announcement – in fact his grandmother was the first family member he called.
“During that conversation, he shared their hope of naming their daughter Lilibet in her honour. Had she not been supportive, they would not have used the name.”
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Another royal author, Robert Hardman, has previously suggested similar claims about the Queen’s reaction in his biography, Charles III: New King, New Court. The Inside Story.
In the book, he claims that a member of staff reported the late monarch was “as angry as I’d ever seen her” after the couple publicly stated she had been “supportive” of the couple using the name.
When Harry and Meghan announced the arrival of their daughter, they said in a statement, “Lili is named after her great-grandmother, Her Majesty The Queen, whose family nickname is Lilibet. Her middle name, Diana, was chosen to honor her beloved late grandmother, The Princess of Wales.”
It was well known that only those closest to Her Majesty used the nickname Lilibet, including her father, King George VI, who once famously said of his two daughters, “Lilibet is my pride. Margaret is my joy.”
(Image credit: Getty Images)
Robert Jobson’s new book also suggests Harry and Meghan caused further friction with the late monarch during one of their final visits to the UK before her death in September 2022.
He claims, “Later, during one of the Sussexes’ final UK visits before her death, they skipped a planned tea – that daily ritual so precious to the Queen. What’s more, they skipped it without giving her notice. She had requested a special cake. By 5.15pm, with no word, she told staff to clear everything away.”
For their part, both the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have maintained that relations were still positive with the Queen before her passing.
After her death, Harry shared a statement calling her his “guiding compass” and expressed gratitude for her support and legacy, stating he was “forever grateful”.
