What to Know
Meghan Markle is another year older, and that means another special occasion in the Sussexes lives came and went without any fanfare at all from the royal family. Once again, the royals failed to publicly acknowledge Meghan’s birthday this week as she turned 45, and according to what royal experts are saying, she should never expect this to change — even if she and Prince Harry do manage to make up with his family someday.
Meghan celebrated her birthday on August 4.
She marked the occasion by sharing a set of black and white photos of herself jumping into a pool, holding a bunch of birthday balloons.
“Thank you for the birthday love!” she wrote in her caption.
On her Instagram Stories, Meghan shared a glimpse at what seemed to be a pretty low-key celebration; she was dancing in her kitchen with music playing and breakfast cooking.
However, the day came and went without a social media post from any of the royals wishing Meghan a happy birthday, which seems a bit harsh — she’s not a working royal anymore, but she did marry the king’s son and give birth to two children who fall in the line of succession, did she not?
Since she’s not a working royal, they likely will never acknowledge her birthday publicly — even if she is actually a family member.
As it turns out, if you want that birthday shout out, the “working” part of being a royal is absolutely necessary. Just marrying into the family isn’t enough! According to what royal experts told Page Six, Meghan is a private citizen now, so that means she can no longer expect to receive birthday wishes publicly.
“The Royal Family has consistently reserved official birthday wishes for working royals, and Harry, Meghan, and their children haven’t been included in that policy for several years,” Kinsey Schofield said. “Palace officials would tell you it’s protocol, not personal.”
It’s true — last September, Harry turned 41 and the day passed without so much as an Instagram Stories post from the royals.
He’s the king’s son, and the king didn’t wish him a happy birthday on Instagram like many (even most) fathers would. That’s cold!
King Charles likely reached out to Meghan privately.
Kinsey said that even though the royal social media team made no mention of Meghan, Charles likely would have reached out to his daughter-in-law personally.
“Charles has always had a compassionate streak, and despite everything that’s happened, he has rarely gone out of his way to be overtly unkind toward Meghan,” she told Page Six. “A discreet gesture would be entirely in keeping with his character.”
However, she doesn’t believe that Prince William and Kate Middleton would have sent Meghan any birthday wishes at all.
“They believe Meghan played a significant role in the breakdown of family trust, and I think any suggestion that they’re secretly exchanging birthday wishes belongs more in the realm of wishful thinking than reality,” she said.
The dysfunction is real in the royal family, y’all.
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