Meghan Markle's 'olive branch' to King Charles denied amid rumoured rift (2025)

Meghan Markle reportedly extended an 'olive branch' to her father-in-law King Charles in the form of a gift box from her As Ever brand, but sources close to the Duchess have denied this

Meghan Markle is said to have sent a box of treats to her estranged father-in-law, King Charles, in an attempt to mend their strained relationship – a claim that has since been refuted.

The Duchess of Sussex, 43, unveiled her lifestyle brand, As Ever, last month, which includes items such as a £22 jar of honey. Royal commentator Neil Sean suggested that a " sample box of delights" from the brand, featured in her popular Netflix show, With Love, Meghan, was dispatched to Clarence House with a note attached.

Furthermore, Ian Pelham Turner told Fox News that this gesture was the mother-of-two's way of "building bridges" with the Firm, following her and Harry's decision to step back as senior working royals in 2020, reports the Mirror.

"I understand how she may not feel respected still, but tiny gestures like this are her way of showing compassion for what the king is going through and helping to rebuild bridges between Prince William, Prince Harry and the king", the expert commented.

However, a source close to the Sussexes has since dismissed these claims, stating: "This did not happen."

Prior to their disagreement, Meghan often spoke warmly about her father-in-law, but their once-close relationship is now in a very different place.

A source alleges that there is now absolutely no contact between the two, and a point of contention in Charles's relationship with Meghan and his youngest son Prince Harry has been the Duke of Sussex's decision to take legal action against the UK Government over the removal of his official police security, which is funded by taxpayers.

Kate Mansey for The Times wrote about the recent tensions arising from Prince Harry's legal action, stating: "Harry's decision to sue the King's government in the King's courts is the sticking point, I am told,".

This revelation stands in contrast to the once cordial relationship shared between Charles and Meghan Markle, as extensively recounted by Harry in his explosive autobiography 'Spare'. Harry narrates that upon Meghan's first meeting with his father, the two hit it off, leaving Charles quite "impressed" with her.

"We talked about acting and the arts generally. What a struggle it could be to make your way in such a trade, Pa said. He had a lot of questions about Meg's career, and he looked impressed by the way she answered. Her confidence, her intelligence, I thought, caught him unawares.

"And then our time was up. Pa and Camilla had another engagement. Royal life. Heavily regimented, overscheduled, so forth. I made a note to explain all this later to Meg. We all stood. Meg leaned towards Pa. I flinched; like Willy, Pa wasn't a hugger. Thankfully, she gave him a standard British cheek-to-cheek, which he actually seemed to enjoy. I walked Meg out of Clarence House, into those lush, fragrant gardens, feeling exultant. Well, that's that then, I thought. Welcome to the family."

Furthermore, according to 'Spare', the bond between Harry and his father was strengthened after he and Meghan visited Charles in Scotland following their Windsor wedding in 2018.

Harry recounted how the relationship between Meghan, referred to affectionately as Meg, and his father Prince Charles, or Pa, strengthened notably after Charles learned of Meghan's shared birthday with the dearly departed Queen Mother.

"The bond between Meg and Pa, always strong, grew even stronger," Harry chronicled, adding that this discovery made Charles "buoyant".

"At the memory of Gan-Gan, and the link between her and my bride, he suddenly became buoyant, telling stories I'd never heard, essentially performing, showing off for Meg," Harry detailed in his writings.

Come 2023, chatter arose about Meghan having penned a letter to King Charles highlighting her worries regarding "unconscious bias" within the Royal Family, after she and Harry's bombshell chat with Oprah Winfrey in 2021.

It was rumoured, as per some reports, that Meghan found Charles's replies unsatisfactory, which The Telegraph hinted might be why she chose not to attend his coronation.

Nonetheless, Meghan's team robustly refuted such claims about her coronation absence, asserting: "The Duchess of Sussex is going about her life in the present, not thinking about correspondence from two years ago related to conversations from four years ago. Any suggestion otherwise is false and frankly ridiculous."

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