Prince Harry's groundbreaking statement from 2016, which confirmed for the first time that he was dating Meghan Markle and condemned the "wave of abuse and harassment" she experienced after news of their romance became public, has been quietly removed from the British royal family's official website. The statement, released by Harry's communications secretary in November 2016, had remained on the royal.uk website for years, but the link is no longer active.
According to Newsweek, the internet archive site Wayback Machine was able to access the link on December 3, 2023, but not a week later on December 10, indicating that the statement was removed during that period. The reason behind the deletion remains unclear, and both Kensington Palace and Buckingham Palace have been contacted for comment.
In the statement, Harry's spokesperson had expressed the prince's concern for Markle's safety and his disappointment in not being able to protect her from the onslaught of media attention. "Some of this has been very public - the smear on the front page of a national newspaper; the racial undertones of comment pieces; and the outright sexism and racism of social media trolls and web article comments," the statement read. "Some of it has been hidden from the public - the nightly legal battles to keep defamatory stories out of papers; her mother having to struggle past photographers in order to get to her front door; the attempts of reporters and photographers to gain illegal entry to her home and the calls to police that followed; the substantial bribes offered by papers to her ex-boyfriend; the bombardment of nearly every friend, co-worker, and loved one in her life."
The Duke of Sussex, 39, recalled in his memoir, "Spare," that he was advised to remain silent regarding the media attention surrounding his newly unveiled romance with the Suits actress, but he pushed for a "course correction immediately." Despite the statement being "everywhere," Harry noted that it changed nothing, and the onslaught continued. He also revealed that the move made his father, now King Charles, and brother, Prince William, "furious" because they had never put out a statement for their girlfriends or wives when they were being harassed.
The removal of Prince Harry's statement is not the only change to the royal.uk website since the Duke and Duchess of Sussex stepped back as working members of the royal family in 2020 and relocated to California. In March, their individual bios on the website were merged into a joint profile, with a link out to their recently launched website, sussex.com. The bottom of the profile page also includes links to the announcements that Harry and Meghan would no longer be working royals, including Queen Elizabeth's 2020 statement following the Sandringham Summit.
The deletion of the statement has raised questions about the ongoing tensions between Prince Harry and the royal family, particularly in light of the revelations made in his memoir and the couple's explosive interview with Oprah Winfrey in 2021. The move also highlights the evolving nature of the royal family's public image and the challenges they face in navigating the media landscape.
