Meghan Markle, Prince Harry lift veil on royal rift

Washington, March 7 (efe-epa).- In an explosive interview aired in the United States on Sunday night, Meghan Markle revealed there had been “concerns and conversations” within the British royal family about the potential skin color of her first child with Prince Harry, and that during her first pregnancy she had thoughts of suicide.

In an interview with Oprah Winfrey, the pair recounted their experiences that led them to leave the royal family, and Harry also spoke of the deterioration of his relationship with both his brother, Prince William, and his father, Prince Charles.

But the most shocking revelations came from Meghan, who spoke alone in the first half of the interview, which lasted two hours and aired during prime time on CBS.

CONVERSATIONS AROUND SKIN COLOR

Meghan said in the months she was pregnant with Archie, there were “concerns and conversations about how dark his skin might be when he’s born.”

She said the conversations were relayed back to her by Harry but declined to identify those involved, stating that “that would be very damaging to them.”

When he later joined the interview, Harry said it’s “a conversation I’m never going to share,” adding he was “a bit shocked.”

Meghan, who is pregnant with her second child and announced during the interview that they will have a girl in the summer, said that in 2019 when she was awaiting the birth of Archie, she learned that he would not be given the usual royal title, nor security.

She added that she was overwhelmed by the idea that “the first member of color in this family isn’t being titled in the same way as other grandchildren would be.”

‘I DIDN’T WANT TO BE ALIVE ANYMORE’

Meghan also revealed that her mental health markedly worsened during her first pregnancy.

“I just didn’t want to be alive anymore. And that was a very clear and real and frightening constant thought. And I remember how he (Harry) just cradled me,” she said.

“I went to the institution and said that I needed to go somewhere to get help, said that I’ve never felt this way before and I need to go somewhere, and they said I couldn’t, that it wouldn’t be good for the institution.”

“This was emails, begging for help, saying very specifically I am concerned for my mental welfare… Nothing was ever done. So we had to find a solution,” Meghan added, seemingly referring to their decision to withdraw from the monarchy and start a new life outside the UK.

MARRIED IN SECRET

Meghan revealed she and Harry had married three days before the wedding in a secret ceremony with only the Archbishop of Canterbury present.

In addition, she ruled on tabloid stories that, before her wedding to Harry, she made her sister-in-law Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge cry, saying “the reverse happened.”

“The narrative about making Kate cry was the beginning of a real character assassination and they knew it wasn’t true,” said Meghan.

The duchess said that it was Catherine who was upset about flower girl dresses ahead of the wedding, adding: “it made me cry. And it really hurt my feelings.”

However, she added that Catherine later apologized and sent her flowers.