Meghan Markle was "extensively protected" from the media intrusion when she was a working royal and Kensington Palace even extended this protection to her father, Thomas Markle, a royal aide has revealed in court.
Jason Knauf, a former senior aide for the Duchess of Sussex, confirmed in statements under oath that Prince Harry's wife instructed them to protect her parents after she and her family were heavily scrutinized in the press. Knauf, who was the Duke and Duchess of Sussex's communication officer, said that they had a series of conversations with the duchess' father and intervened when the older Markle was dealing directly with some publications.
Further statements from Knauf also showed that he and his colleagues in Kensington Palace made "significant efforts" for several months to protect the Duchess of Sussex, especially from media coverage that was "unfair or untrue." These statements came out as the duchess won her case against Associated Newspapers, the publisher of Daily Mailand Mail on Sunday.
Meghan Markle sued the publication for privacy breach after parts of her private letters to her dad became the fodder for content in the tabloids. But this lawsuit also led to the breakdown and estrangement of her relationship with her dad. In an interview with Oprah Winfrey, the Duchess of Sussex said that she felt betrayed by her own father because he gave the press the copies of her letter.
However, Knauf's statements in court also belied claims that the palace didn't try to protect the Duchess of Sussex. She also told Winfrey that this was one of the reasons why she and Harry decided to leave the royal family because they felt they were not treated fairly compared to the other members.
Meanwhile, it's been over a year since the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have left the royal fold and they told the queen in January 2021 that they have no plans of returning to their former work. Their royal patronages will soon be turned over to the rest of the royal family as the couple embarks on their own ventures, such as their Netflix series and their Spotify show.
Meghan Markle also landed a book deal with Random Publishing to release her first children's story based on the poem she wrote for Harry as a first-time dad. The Duchess of Sussex said that she hopes the story will resonate with fathers and their kids, "no matter what makeup," but critics said the theme of her book contradicted her own relationship with her father.
