Meghan Markle, Lilibet, and Archie returned to the UK today to meet King Charles and Queen Camilla with Prince Harry, Town & Country and People confirmed. It marks seven-year-old Archie’s and five-year-old Lilibet’s first time back in the country since the family attended the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee in July 2022. It is Meghan’s first time back since the Queen’s funeral in September 2022.
Charles and Camilla hosted them at Highgrove House, his private home in Gloucestershire.
No other details about the afternoon meeting have been released.
Earlier today, People confirmed that Meghan would not join Harry at his Invictus Games event in Birmingham. While the family has been vacationing in Europe since late June, it was unclear whether Meghan and the kids would visit the UK amid concerns about security.
Last week, Harry’s rep released a statement following reports he was reconsidering taking his family to his home country because they were not offered police protection outside of royal residences.
The rep said, ‘Prince Harry’s programme in the United Kingdom includes both public and private engagements across the country. Safe accommodation is only one element of an effective protective security plan because risk follows the person, not the place.’
‘The issue has never been accommodation,’ the spokesperson added. ‘The issue is whether appropriate and proportionate protective security is being provided throughout the entirety of the visit. The independent Risk Management Board that RAVEC [Executive Committee for the Protection of Royalty and Public Figures, which decides who can receive police protection and to what extent] itself decided was necessary last November has still not taken place.
‘It is therefore difficult to understand how the proportionality of the current arrangements can credibly be maintained without that independent assessment. The Duke continues to explore every available option to enable the visit to proceed safely and to give his children the opportunity to enjoy the UK’.
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Alyssa is the Deputy Editor, News and Strategy, at ELLE.com, where she oversees coverage of celebrities and royals (particularly Meghan Markle and Kate Middleton). She previously held positions at InStyle and Cosmopolitan. When she’s not working, she loves running around Central Park, making people take outfit pics of her, and exploring New York City.
