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See the full story · 20 sourcesPrince Harry and Meghan Markle are heading back across the pond. Jonathan Brady / POOL / AFP
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are moving back to the UK.
They will live in a private residence and enroll their children in a school in the UK.
The news comes after years of strain in the couple's relationship with the royal family.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are moving back to the UK.
On Wednesday, People reported that the couple would be moving back to Britain "for an extended period of time" with their children, Prince Archie, 7, and Princess Lilibet, 5.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex won't return to their royal duties, which they stepped back from in January 2020, but they plan to live near London. The move will put them in proximity to King Charles, Prince William, and the rest of the royal family for the first time in over six years.
Harry, 41, and Meghan, 45, have had a strained relationship with the royals since they decided to step back from their royal duties. Meghan has largely focused on her As Ever brand in the US in recent years, but Harry has visited his father a handful of times since the king was diagnosed with cancer in February 2024.
Here's a timeline of Harry and Meghan's relationship with the royal family.
Prince Harry appeared close to his brother growing up, though his relationship with his father was more complicated.
Prince Charles poses with his sons Prince William (R) and Prince Harry (L) during the Royal Family's ski break at Klosters on March 31, 2005 in Switzerland. Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images
Prince Harry and Prince William appeared close in childhood photos.
When Princess Diana died after a run-in with the paparazzi in August 1997, the brothers seemed to grow tighter than ever, sticking to each other's sides in the years following her death.
William said he and Harry were "uniquely bonded because of what we've been through" in a video released by Kensington Palace in 2017.
Charles became Harry and William's primary parent after their mother's death, but according to royal reporter Katie Nicholl's book, "The New Royals: Queen Elizabeth's Legacy and the Future of the Crown," he was often too "busy" to spend time with his children.
"With a busy work schedule and Camilla now very much a priority in his private diary, Charles placed too much trust in William and Harry to look after themselves," Nicholl wrote of the king's approach to parenting his teenage sons, which led them to get into trouble .
As an adult, Harry served as the best man at William and Kate Middleton's 2011 wedding, and the trio often attended royal events together, suggesting a close relationship. Harry once called Kate " the big sister I never had ."
Harry and Meghan Markle started dating in July 2016.
TORONTO, ON - SEPTEMBER 25: Meghan Markle and Prince Harry attend the Wheelchair Tennis on day 3 of the Invictus Games Toronto 2017 at Nathan Philips Square on September 25, 2017 in Toronto, Canada. The Games use the power of sport to inspire recovery, support rehabilitation and generate a wider understanding and respect for the Armed Forces Karwai Tang/WireImage/Getty Images
A mutual friend brought Harry and Meghan together in 2016, and they became a couple almost immediately.
Harry confirmed his relationship with Meghan on November 8, 2016, via a statement through his spokesperson because "his girlfriend, Meghan Markle, has been subject to a wave of abuse and harassment."
It went on to say Meghan had been subjected to harassment in news articles, comment sections of articles, and in person as people tried to gain access to her home.
Following the release of the statement, reports surfaced that William did not approve of Harry going public with his relationship. He then disputed those claims in a statement issued by Kensington Palace .
"The Duke of Cambridge absolutely understands the situation concerning privacy and supports the need for Prince Harry to support those closest to him," the statement said.
Harry and Meghan announced they were engaged a year later.
Harry and Meghan got married on May 19, 2018, at Windsor Castle.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle leave their wedding ceremony at St. George's Chapel. Ben Birchhall/Pool Photo via AP
At the time, Harry and Meghan's wedding seemed to be a joyous, family affair.
Charles walked Meghan down the aisle , Prince William was Harry's best man , and Princess Charlotte and Prince George were among the bridesmaids and page boys .
However, there was controversy in the weeks leading up to the wedding because of Meghan's family.
Meghan's father, Thomas Markle, and half-sister, Samantha Markle, repeatedly spoke to tabloids about Meghan, and Thomas posed for staged paparazzi photos in exchange for money, according to the Daily Mail.
The Sussexes moved out of the property they shared with Prince William and Kate Middleton in November 2018.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle in October 2018. Pool/Samir Hussein/WireImage/Getty Images
In the early months of their marriage, Meghan and Harry lived in Nottingham Cottage on the grounds of Kensington Palace, where William and Kate lived with their children.
However, shortly after Kensington Palace announced Meghan was pregnant with her first child, the Sussexes shared that they would move to Frogmore Cottage — 18 miles from Kensington Palace, on the grounds of Windsor Castle — on November 18, 2018.
Meghan gave birth to Prince Archie in May 2019.
In March 2019, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex split their office with the Cambridges.
Prince William, Kate Middleton, Meghan Markle, and Prince Harry visiting Sandringham in 2018. Samir Hussein/WireImage
Until the spring of 2019, Harry and Meghan shared a royal office with William and Kate.
In March of that year, Buckingham Palace announced that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex had been appointed their own royal household .
Soon after the palace announced that the couple would have their own household, ...
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