Why Meghan Markle and Prince Returned Millions in Royal Wedding Gifts

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle had to return millions of dollars’ worth of wedding gifts following their royal wedding last month.

The couple hosted one of the biggest weddings of the century in May, and plenty of well-wishers wanted to get in on the action. According to a report by The Sun, the new Duke and Duchess of Sussex received wedding gifts from various companies hoping to promote their brands. Unfortunately, the royal family cannot accept free gifts from companies, as it could be construed as an exploitation of their ruling status.

All in all, the two reportedly returned about £7 million worth of corporate gifts. That adds up to about $9,342,550 in U.S. dollars. Markle and Harry specifically requested that friends, family and well-wishers give to a few of their favorite charities rather than send the couple gifts. They are both already extraordinarily wealthy, and there’s not much that they could have received that they didn’t already have.

However, Markle and Harry did have a small registry that they sent to their closest friends and family. The two are working on furnishing their soon-to-be home in Apartment 1 in Kensington Palace. The massive dwelling has been newly renovated for the happy couple. On top of that, they are rumored to be searching for a second home outside of the city.

They registered at the highly exclusive Soho House. The private members’ club caters to the extremely wealthy. It offers high-end home goods and also consists of restaurants, bars and clubs around the world. Their registry was published by The Sunday Times, and contained everything from furniture to dishes.

Markle and Prince Harry were reportedly not the first royal couple to have to send back a mountain of gifts. In fact, their £7 million in freebies pales in comparison to the £30 million that Prince William and Kate Middleton have reportedly had to send back since their wedding in 2011.

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge held a much bigger wedding than Prince Harry and Markle’s. While this year’s wedding took place in St. George’s Chapel and held about 600 guests, Prince William and Middleton invited 2,000 people to their ceremony at Westminster Abbey in the heart of London.

According to The Daily Star, many of the gifts Prince William and Middleton have sent back have been associated with the births of their three children. Judging by that, it’s pretty likely that Markle and Prince Harry will be sending some more gifts back to their senders soon. The couple is reportedly eager to start a family.