Meghan Markle shared details about the time she and her husband, Prince Harry, were separated from their young children following Queen Elizabeth II’s passing in September 2022.
The couple had been in the UK by coincidence when the Queen passed away at Balmoral, Scotland. They had arrived in Harry’s homeland on September 3 for what was intended to be a short trip to attend various events and charity engagements.
Highlights
- Meghan Markle revealed she was separated from her children for nearly three weeks after Queen Elizabeth II's passing in 2022.
- Prince Harry described the separation as very difficult, saying they couldn't stop hugging their kids when reunited in Los Angeles.
- On her show, Meghan said motherhood is better than she expected but fears missing her kids when they grow up.
During their stay, they attended the One World Summit in Manchester before traveling to Germany for the Invictus Games Dusseldorf 2023 One Year To Go event. On September 8, they were getting ready to attend the WellChild Awards in London when they learned of the queen’s passing.
Image credits: Netflix
The couple remained in the UK for the state funeral on September 19, while their children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet, stayed at their Los Angeles home.
Recently, the Duchess of Sussex reflected on her lifestyle show With Love, Meghan, about how difficult it had been to be separated from her children.
Image credits: meghan
Image credits: meghan
The topic came up while Meghan was speaking with her guest, Queer Eye star and fashion designer Tan France, about the challenges of parenthood.
"I might d*e without my kids, I need my boys. If I don't see them for a couple of days. I feel like my heart is broken," Tan told Meghan.
"Oh, I know," she replied, before adding: "The longest I went without being around our kids was almost three weeks. I was…(pauses) not well."
The Duchess of Sussex spoke about the challenges of parenthood in her show, With Love, Meghan
Image credits: Netflix
Meghan didn’t directly name the circumstances surrounding her separation from the children, but Harry addressed the couple’s absence in his 2023 memoir, Spare.
He described that the days following his grandmother’s passing were "difficult" and revealed that he and Meghan were separated from Archie and Lilibet for "longer than we'd ever been".
At the time of the Queen’s passing at the age of 96, Archie was 3 years old, while Lilibet was 15 months old.
When the family reunited in Montecito, Los Angeles, "for days and days we couldn't stop hugging the children, couldn't let them out of our sight,” Harry penned.
Image credits: Netflix
In her Netflix reality show, which recently premiered its second season, Meghan shared further details about raising her two children, aged 6 and 4, including their morning routines.
"I make hot breakfast most mornings, for my kids and my husband," she shared. "Fried eggs, pancakes, but I like to do surprise pancakes for the kids so I always put some ground flaxseed, or some chia seeds in, and Lily will ask me, 'Can I have my chia seeds? I want it to have freckles.'"
She added: "One thing I do with my kids, that takes a bit more time, I like the presentation (of food) for them. Archie will say, 'Oh mama, that looks beautiful.'"
Meghan and Harry were apart from their children for almost three weeks at the time of the queen's passing
Image credits: Samir Hussein/Getty Images
Image credits: Phil Noble - WPA Pool/Getty Images
In the series, Meghan demonstrated how she arranges fruit into a rainbow shape to make it more appealing to her children.
During her conversation with Tan, she also shared that motherhood was “better than I ever expected” and discussed the distant yet emotional future when Archie and Lilibet will grow up and leave the family home.
"The longest I went without being around our kids was almost three weeks. I was…not well," she said
Image credits: meghan
Image credits: meghan
“You know what’s funny? When parents are like, ‘Oh, I just can’t wait for them to go to college and be out,’ I’m like, I never want my children to leave," Tan said.
Meghan agreed. "I’ll miss them so much. You want to be the parent who’s like ‘Yes, go do it. Go do your thing. Go live that life. But I’m going to miss you so much.’"
The couple, who left the UK for California in 2020, share two children: Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet
Image credits: meghan
The retired actress, who moved to her native California with Harry and Archie in 2020, recently told People magazine that life away from the UK has allowed her to rekindle her passions for cooking and entertaining.
"When your children get to a certain age — when you’re not just playing in the sandbox with them but almost playing in your own sandbox again — it’s super joyful," she said.
"As a woman, a mom and a wife, to be able to find yourself again — in a way that was always present but that you maybe couldn’t put as much attention on as you now can when your kids are a little bit older — is a wonderful feeling."
Meghan's comment did not sit well with many social media users, who considered it out of touch
