When Meghan Markle married Prince Harry in 2018, life behind palace walls wasn’t exactly the fairytale many imagined, at least when it came to choosing a home. The Duchess of Sussex reportedly had her sights set on Windsor Castle, the historic royal residence that’s been home to monarchs for centuries.
But instead of getting a suite inside the castle, Meghan and Harry were offered Frogmore Cottage, a much smaller property on the Windsor Estate. Royal historian Hugo Vickers told The Times there were “empty bedrooms and suites in the private apartments which the Sussexes may have had their eye on, or perhaps some former living quarters in the castle grounds converted into other things.”
Still, he added, “I can see how it might not be entirely appropriate to have a young family living there.” In other words, there may have been space, but there were also royal protocols and privacy concerns to consider. Royal author Katie Nicholl shed more light on the decision in her book The New Royals. She explained that Frogmore Cottage’s location made it a surprisingly big deal, reports the Mirror.
“The Queen’s entrance into the gardens is right next to their cottage. It is essentially her backyard, her solitude, and her privacy,” Nicholl wrote. By gifting Harry and Meghan the cottage, Nicholl noted, the Queen was making a personal sacrifice. “She was giving that up in gifting Harry and Meghan Frogmore Cottage. We all thought it was very big of her. She said ‘I hope they’ll respect it.”
Despite the royal real estate drama, the Sussexes began their married life at Frogmore. But things changed quickly. In 2020, Harry and Meghan stepped back from their royal roles, moved to California, and took their son Archie with them.
They later accused the Royal Family of showing racist attitudes toward their child and aired their grievances in headline-making interviews. Since then, the couple has built a new life in the United States. They now live in a sprawling Montecito estate and welcomed their second child, daughter Lilibet, in 2021.
Looking back, the Windsor Castle decision might seem like just a small detail in the bigger royal saga. But for Meghan and Harry, it was one of many moments that hinted at the challenges they’d face as part of “the Firm.” As Vickers and Nicholl’s comments show, royal housing isn’t just about where someone sleeps; it’s about tradition, protocol, and sometimes, subtle power dynamics.