Prince William is said to have a carefully considered strategy in mind when it comes to the long-term futures of his brother and sister-in-law, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, within the Royal Family.
Although the Duke and Duchess of Sussex stepped down as senior working royals in 2020 and relocated to California, they have retained their royal titles. However, following the recent removal of titles from Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor and Sarah Ferguson, speculation has intensified over whether Harry and Meghan could eventually face the same fate.
Several royal commentators have suggested the Sussexes are now in a “vulnerable” position. Royal author Tom Bower has previously claimed Harry and Meghan are living on “borrowed time” when it comes to their status, a view echoed by royal expert Tom Sykes.
Speaking to the Daily Beast, Sykes suggested that when William eventually becomes King, he could move swiftly to issue new letters patent to redefine or remove princely titles from non-working royals, potentially including the Sussexes.
Despite this, other experts believe William is unlikely to make such a move a priority. Commentator Afua Hagan argues that stripping his brother of titles would not align with William’s wider vision for the monarchy.
“I don’t think he’s that petty,” she said. “I don’t think he’s got time to do that, and he doesn’t want that to be the focus of his reign. Why would the headline be, ‘The first thing I’m going to do is take away my brother’s titles’?”
“There are so many other things the Royal Family needs to do to modernise. Taking away people’s titles for living their own lives would just seem silly and petty, so I don’t think he’ll do it.”
According to observers, William’s “clever plan” may simply be allowing time, public opinion and constitutional realities to shape Harry and Meghan’s position naturally, rather than forcing a dramatic showdown that could overshadow the early years of his reign.