Meghan Markle didn’t like the strict rules of the ruling class — and hated playing second fiddle to Kate Middleton, a Kensington Palace staffer claims in a new book.
The aide has contributed to biographer Tom Quinn’s new tell-all, “Gilded Youth: An Intimate History of Growing Up in the Royal Family,” which became available today.
The staffer details how Markle, 41, reportedly struggled to adjust to royal life when she married Prince Harry in 2018.
An excerpt of the book published in the Mirror says the Duchess of Sussex was “dazzled by the worldwide fame that being a princess would bring.”
However, she didn’t like being compared to Middleton, 41.
“She hated the constraints and the rules; she hated being a second-rate princess — second to Katherine Middleton, I mean,” the book says.
“Most of all she hated the fact that she had to do what she was told and go where she was told in the endless and to a large extend pointless royal round,” the excerpt continues.
Markle also reportedly felt that she was being handled in a “slightly condescending way” by the Firm due to the fact that she wasn’t a blood royal, despite Middleton being treated in the same manner.
The Duchess of Cambridge, however, “does not have Meghan’s messianic tendencies” and was able to deal with the royal establishment better than the former actress, the aide alleges.
They continue: “The thing to remember is that there is no limit to Meghan’s ambition, and like most fiercely ambitious people, she never thinks, ‘Have I got this wrong? Am I overreacting?’
“But it remains true that she is a lovely person so long as she is never crossed. For a weak boy unsure of himself like Harry, she is perfect because her absolute certainty makes him feel safe,” says the staffer.
The staffer describes Markle as a “very nice, smiley, super-positive person,” but theorizes she struggled with not being able to control her own life anymore after joining the royals.
The staff member also explains that Markle had a hard time being a part of the long-running institution where she had no influence. She was also reportedly upset that her residence would be at Nottingham Cottage on the grounds of Kensington Palace when she thought she’d be living in Windsor Castle.
Markle and her husband, Prince Harry, made a decision to take a step back as senior members of the royal family in January 2020. They subsequently moved to California in March of that year.
Harry, 38, and the mother of two could be making the trek back to the United Kingdom come May 6, when King Charles is officially crowned as monarch during his coronation.
While invitations have yet to be sent out, the couple is set to be on the guest list.
Buckingham Palace insiders told the Daily Mail last December: “Harry is his son and His Majesty will always love him. While things are difficult at the moment, the door will always be left ajar.”