Prince Harry and Meghan Markle Attend First Royal Event Since Stepping Down, Moving to US

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle went back to her their royal roots during their trip to Europe. According to Deadline, they attended their first royal event since stepping down as official, working members of the British royal family. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex reportedly attended Maundy Thursday service in Windsor alongside his father, Prince Charles, and stepmother, Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall. 

Harry and Markle made a pit stop in the United Kingdom while on their way to The Netherlands for the Invictus Games. This marked the first time that the prince has been in the country since July 2021 while the former actor was last in the United Kingdom in 2020, which is when it was announced that the couple was stepping down from their duties as working royals. While in the country, they attended Maundy Thursday service, a traditional distribution of newly minted coins that falls on the Thursday before Sunday. Deadline noted that Queen Elizabeth did not attend the service, her first time in 50 years.

Charles and Camilla stood in for the monarch during the service. The last time that the queen was unable to attend Maundy Thursday service was back in 1970 when she was away on tour in New Zealand. At the time, her mother, Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, stood in for her. Even though the queen could not attend the recent service, she reportedly still met with Harry and Markle at Windsor Castle during their brief trip. Royal expert Omid Scobie said about the meeting, per Good Morning America, “It gave them the chance to spend those precious private moments with the queen and also take some steps forward in healing.”

The duke and duchess set off to Europe in order to attend the Invictus Games, which are taking place in The Hague, The Netherlands. On Friday, ahead of the official start of the games, Markle and Harry met with wounded service members from Ukraine, per Vanity Fair. The couple reportedly attended a reception to bring athletes from Team USA and Team Ukraine together and later attended a welcome event. The Invictus Games served as Markle’s first public appearance in some time, but she’s no stranger to the event, which Harry founded. She attended the Invictus Games in 2017 alongside the prince, marking their first public appearance as a couple.