Once again the mystique of the British Royal family has been shattered by scandal. The world was mesmerized when Prince Harry finally chose a bride of his own choice but class conscious Britain applauded when his choice was not only a " commoner ", but a divorced woman who was also an American movie actress.
Then there was another factor, Harry broke the colour barrier by marrying a woman of mixed blood which must have brought great joy to to the many coloured people from all over the world who are now living in Britain. Meghan was a breath of fresh air in a fast changing society and it is obvious that she received a warm welcome from the Queen's subjects.
The Royal family stood fast and appeared to support this union but it appears there was tension beneath the placid surface. That became obvious when the Duke and Duchess of Sussex announced that they were walking away from Royal duties and would live overseas.
It appears that the birth of a Royal baby raised questions from some of the Royal household. There was concern as to what skin colour this child would be and Harry was concerned at disparaging remarks from other Royals directed at his wife. All of this surfaced when both Harry and Meghan granted a " tell all " interview with American TV hostess Oprah Winfrey.
Meghan revealed that she had been so unhappy she contemplated suicide. Harry spoke of tensions within the Royal family so serious that he was no longer talking to his father, Prince Charles who is destined to be the next Royal to sit on the throne. It has long been rumoured that there is ongoing friction between Harry and his brother.
Now another Royal baby is on the way for the Sussex family and it appears that both children will be raised in America. They will be " celebrities " much followed by the American media and compared to Harry's brothers children on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean. That is a comparison the British Royal family will not enjoy.
Harry has always been a maverick from his early years, and no doubt the Royals hoped he would settle down with a nice English girl they could absorb and train to be dutiful and make speeches and open events with decorum. Instead, Harry was attracted to a woman who had created her own career as an actress and was made very unwelcome by several of the unnamed Royals, which did not include the Queen or her consort, Prince Phillip.
Earlier last century a king abdicated his throne in Britain over a woman and lived in exile in France for the rest of his life. It seems that this estrangement must create tension between father and son when Charles eventually succeeds to the throne.
The mystique that enthralled the British people has long disappeared. The gates of Buckingham Palace are open to TV cameras and the Royals live their lives in the spotlight. The trevails of the Royals seem set to be played in the public realm as has become the custom in this twenty-first century.
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