The Duke and Duchess of Sussex quit their royal duties in 2020 before departing for America – but not before they attended their final engagement as working members of the Royal Family
Each year, the Royal Family attend the Commonwealth Day service at Westminster Abbey, marking the first occasion in the royal calendar to celebrate both the Commonwealth and the King in a vibrant and poignant ceremony attended by many senior royals, including the King and Queen, and the Prince and Princess of Wales.
When the service took place in 2020, it marked Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s final official engagement as senior working royals before abandoning their duties and moving to California. Just weeks before, they dropped the bombshell announcement that they were departing the UK and withdrawing from their senior positions within the Firm.
The morning ahead of the Commonwealth Day service, Meghan also undertook her final solo engagement by meeting with scholars from across the Commonwealth at Buckingham Palace in her then-capacity as patron of the Association of Commonwealth Universities.
And as the engagement concluded, Meghan made an emotional farewell to staff and her trusted aides who had assembled before delivering a revealing parting remark, according to a tell-all royal book.
In the Harry and Meghan biography Finding Freedom released in August 2020, authors Omid Scobie and Carolyn Durand described witnessing several of Meghan’s staff bidding their farewells.
They wrote: “Staff who had been with the couple from day one were mourning the end of what was supposed to be a happy story: two people fall in love, get married, have a baby, serve the Queen, the end. Instead, they were leaving the country.”
A member of staff then recounted Meghan’s parting words as the engagement drew to a close. He added: “As Meghan gave me a final hug goodbye, she said, ‘It didn’t have to be this way’.”
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex attended the annual Commonwealth Day service alongside fellow members of the Firm, with many observers remarking on the palpable tension amongst the family. According to one account, Harry appeared to be “fighting back the tears” at the momentous occasion.
In his book Battle of Brothers, royal author and historian Robert Lacey notes that while Meghan radiated a “megawatt” smile, Harry cut a far more sombre figure. He writes: “Observers also noted that Harry’s face was ‘quite tense and unsmiling’ – and that when William sat down close to him, he barely greeted his brother.
“Throughout the service, Meghan megawatted away with her best TV smile but, as the ceremony progressed, Harry appeared to grow gloomier. According to one observer, ‘his accelerated blinking even suggested he might have been fighting back tears.'”.
Later that same day, having attended the Commonwealth Day service at Westminster Abbey, Harry and Meghan departed the UK for Canada, where they were reunited with their young son Archie, before eventually settling in California several months later.
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