Prince William 'saw right through' Meghan Markle for one reason

Prince William feared Meghan Markle had zero plans of remaining in the Firm for the long haul, it has been claimed. In the build-up to Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's wedding in May 2018, the Prince of Wales' feelings towards Meghan allegedly began to sour.

Royal biographer Phil Dampier said: "She saw it as a stepping stone, getting married to Harry and to new fame and fortune. And I think that's what initially Prince William was concerned about. And that's why they fell out. And now, we are where we are. But to have this confirmed by somebody so close to the Queen is really dynamic."

Mr Dampier referred to the late Queen's cousin and eldest confidante, Lady Elizabeth Anson, that even the late Monarch was apprehensive about Meghan's intentions.

Lady Elizabeth reportedly told royal biographer Sally Bedell Smith, as stated in the Daily Mail: "I don't trust Meghan an inch. Meghan could turn into nothing but trouble." She also added how she was suspicious of the TV actress. She said: "We hope but don't quite think she is in love. We think she engineered it all."

William was said to have cautioned his brother about the pace of his relationship with Meghan prior to their wedding, having felt worried about how fast the couple were moving.

In January 2023, Harry alleged William gave him a warning to take it slow in his memoir Spare, writing: "It's too fast, he'd told me. Too soon. In fact, he'd actually been pretty discouraging about my even dating Meg."

He writes: "One day, sitting together in his garden, he'd predicted a host of difficulties I could expect if I hooked up with an 'American actress', a phrase he always managed to make sound like a 'convicted felon'."

Despite his family's concerns, Prince Harry proposed to Meghan in November 2018, a little more than a year after they first met and began dating.

The Prince wrote in Spare: "We both wanted to start a family straightaway. We were working crazy hours, our jobs were demanding, the timing wasn't ideal, but too bad. This had always been our main priority."

Harry and Meghan married in St George's Chapel in Windsor Castle on May 19, 2018, but later quit as senior working royals in 2020, and eventually settled in Montecito, California, where they live with their two children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet.