MEGHAN’S MANIFESTO
‘Proud feminist’ the Duchess of Sussex will take the royals in a striking new direction
THE Duchess of Sussex has made it clear she intends to take the royal family in a bold new direction, declaring she is ‘proud to be a woman and a feminist’.
In a candid biography published on the Queen’s official website, Meghan highlights a speech she gave at the 2015 UN Women Conference, in which she forcefully stated her guiding principles.
The profile recalls how volunteering in a soup kitchen in LA’s Skid Row, and campaigning against a ‘sexist’ washing up liquid advert, helped shape her ‘lifelong commitment’ to ‘social justice and women’s empowerment’.
The new page on Buckingham Palace’s online guide to the royals lists the duchess’s interests, saying she has a ‘keen awareness of social issues’.
Last night a source told the Daily Mail that while Meghan was keen to make an ‘impact’, she would not rush into
anything, and was very conscious of what ‘it means to be a royal’. The public statement of her values comes after she insisted on walking halfway down the aisle alone, and refused to be ‘given away’. As details of her new role were revealed, it emerged that: ÷After a turbulent run-up to the wedding, a tearful Prince Harry praised his wife for having ‘navigated everything with such grace’, adding: ‘We make such a great team’; ÷Meghan made a speech at their private reception, referring to ‘my husband’, which made Harry blush, and thanking Prince Charles for his welcome to the family; ÷Her wedding dress designer, Givenchy’s Clare Waight Keller, revealed that even the women working on the garment were kept in the dark about who it was for; ÷Hairdresser Serge Normant revealed it took him just 45 minutes to create Meghan’s ‘messy bun’ using a packet of hair pins that cost only a couple of pounds; ÷The couple’s first dance was to Land Of A Thousand Dances by Wilson Pickett and a ‘worse-for-wear’ George Clooney was among the last to stagger off the dance floor; ÷The newlyweds spent last night at a mystery romantic bolt-hole, with the Queen apparently looking after Meghan’s pet beagle Guy while they are away.
Yesterday the Duchess of Sussex’s name was already on the Court Circular, the royal family’s record of engagements. Tomorrow she will attend her first official engagement as a royal, at a Buckingham Palace garden party to mark Charles’s 70th birthday.
Meghan has, sources say, already become a strong influence on the direction of Harry’s public work, particularly his championing of women’s issues.
The couple plan to become ‘Commonwealth champions’, to the delight of the Queen. A trip to Australia, New Zealand, Fiji and Tonga in October is being discussed at the highest level and aides are promising that the second half of this year will be ‘incredibly busy’ for the pair.
They will also take a couple of short trips before the summer, including a visit to Dublin. Harry, 33, is yet to visit Ireland but Meghan, 36, spent time there as an ambassador for the One Young World summit in 2014.
But it is the visit to Australia, where Harry’s Invictus Games for injured servicemen and women is being held in Sydney, that is expected to showcase the duke and duchess as a new royal ‘power couple’.
Yesterday, a senior aide said everyone, not
‘Determined to have an impact’
least the bride and groom, had been deeply moved by how well Saturday’s wedding went. ‘I think that although the day was unquestionably royal in every way…it felt like just the two of them were there,’ said another. ‘When they looked into each other’s eyes it was clear nothing else mattered.’
Saturday evening’s riotous party was described as the ‘perfect end to a perfect day’. Meghan gave a speech in which she grinned broadly as she referred to Harry as ‘my husband’. ‘I think he was even more emotional than her,’ a source said.
‘Meghan also expressed her gratitude to her mother and to her friends … but the person she really singled out was the Prince of Wales. She has been so touched by how welcoming he has been to her and her mother.’
The couple spent their first night of married life in Windsor Castle’s Lancaster Tower, before enjoying a night at an undisclosed location. But they will return to work this week, having postponed their honeymoon.
In recent months Meghan has been schooled in royal etiquette and traditions by royal household and diplomatic staff.
One source said: ‘She is a very intelligent, elegant woman with enormous life experience, who has conducted herself impeccably. But there are a lot of pitfalls in public life, particularly as a member of the royal family, and she has been learning about what we call “the traditions”.’
A source close to the duchess said that she would be respectful of the parameters of being a royal while pursuing causes close to her heart, such as women’s rights.
‘She is determined to have an impact but she knows without question what it means to be a royal – she sits very comfortably in this new royal role,’ they said. ‘She has got a lot of things she wants to do but … she is not going to rush out a list of patronages until she is entirely comfortable with everything.’
JUST 20 years ago, the monarchy seemed to be struggling for its very survival.
Two messy divorces, an explosive book about the infidelity of the heir to the throne, Camillagate, Squidgygate and the toesucking exploits of the Duchess of York were capped by the perceived lack of emotional reaction from Buckingham Palace over the death of Princess Diana.
Public esteem for the Royal Family had hit a historic low.
How different the picture looks today. Prince Harry’s wedding to the thoroughly modern actress Meghan Markle did more than put the seal on a fairytale romance. It symbolised the monarchy’s evolution into a contemporary institution fit for the 21st century.
And what a glorious day it was – one in which tradition and modernity were fused in perfect harmony. We had a mixed-race divorcee bride being led down the aisle by our future king, a black Episcopalian preacher officiating, gospel singers complementing a traditional choir and soul anthem Stand By Me on the hymn sheet with Guide Me O Thou Great Redeemer.
Of course, the rehabilitation of the House of Windsor is about more than this one event. It has been a slow and gradual process.
It owes a great deal to Prince William and his own bride, who with their three children are blossoming into a model family.
Charles himself has also changed from a rather haughty, sometimes petulant prince into a more rounded and apparently more contented soul.
But above all, it has been the fortitude and selfless hard work of the Queen – supported in rock-like fashion by the Duke of Edinburgh – which has kept the monarchy on the rails. Through the tumult she has remained a shining example of how a sovereign should act.
If she needs any advice, Meghan should seek counsel from the Queen. Over 65 years, she has proved herself to be the greatest royal diplomat of all. FOR a third time, the House of Lords is bidding to force through new curbs on Press freedom – despite having twice been rebuffed by the Commons. A comprehensive clear-out of this undemocratic, unelected chamber of cronies and superannuated political hacks really is desperately overdue.