‘No chance’: In a dramatic final act, Queen Elizabeth left Meghan Markle with one last rejection

The Platinum Jubilee celebrations of 2022 were both happy and sad for Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. While the country was celebrating Queen Elizabeth II’s 70 years as monarch, the Sussexes were going through a very personal moment: introducing their daughter, Lilibet, to her great-grandmother for the first time.

What should have been a purely happy occasion had a small but meaningful rejection mixed into it. During Lilibet’s first birthday celebrations in the UK, Harry and Meghan asked if a photographer could be there to take pictures of the important meeting between the two Lilibets. This might have seemed like a simple request, just wanting to save a special family memory, but Buckingham Palace quickly and firmly said no.

An unnamed insider told The Mirror, “Harry and Meghan wanted their photographer to capture the moment Lilibet met the Queen. But they were told no chance. It was a private family meeting.”

The Queen denied pictures be taken by a photographer

The Palace’s reason was that they were worried any photos taken by the Sussexes’ photographer could end up being shared with American media. The refusal to allow a photographer might seem like a small thing, but it stands out when compared to other parts of the Queen’s relationship with her grandson and his family.

In his book, Spare, Prince Harry wrote about the meeting, describing a warm and loving moment between the Queen and his children. He mentioned how the Queen seemed amused by the way the children acted and how she seemed to expect them to be more “American” (maybe louder or more energetic) in how they behaved.

A letter from the Queen’s private secretary that came up during one of Prince Harry’s legal cases seems to show a different narrative than the one that is happening now. The Queen may not have wanted Prince Harry to put his life in jeopardy or get cut off by his family.

The letter showed how much the Queen cared about Harry and his family’s safety. “You will understand well that ensuring that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex remain safe is of paramount importance to Her Majesty and her family. Given the duke’s public profile by virtue of being born into the royal family, his military service, the duchess’s own independent profile and the well-documented history of targeting of the Sussex family by extremists, it is imperative that the family continues to be provided with effective security.”