Due to her pregnancy, Meghan Markle was not able to attend the funeral of Prince Philip,
the Duke of Edinburgh, who died on April 9th at the age of 99 and whose funeral took place
on Saturday, April 17th.
When news broke that she wouldn't be accompanying Prince Harry to the UK, tabloids like Daily
Mail ran stories suggesting that the Duchess of Sussex had opted out of the ceremony to
avoid being "the center of attention." While Meghan, herself, never released a public statement
after the death of Prince Philip, Harry did, on his family's behalf. He wrote,
"Meghan, Archie, and I (as well as your future great-granddaughter) will always hold a special
place for you in our hearts."
Meghan, per Harper's Bazaar, watched Prince Philip's funeral from the comfort of her California
home. She also sent a handwritten note to Prince Philip, which accompanied a customized
funeral wreath, and lay against the pews of St. George's Chapel during the Prince’s
funeral service.
Whatever her intentions may have been, when news of Meghan's wreath broke, it sparked
almost immediate outrage from British tabloids and followers of the royal family on social
media. It's not that the funeral wreath was an unusual gesture. Far from it. Telegraph
reports that hers joined eight other wreaths at St. George's Chapel. Queen Elizabeth, herself,
had a lily, rose, freesia, waxflower, sweet pea, and jasmine-filled funeral wreath made
for her late husband, and wrote a final letter to Philip, which she put inside of it.
As reported by Hello! Magazine, Meghan's wreath was created by Willow Crossley, the florist
who was in charge of the floral design at both Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's wedding
reception and their son Archie's christening. It included acanthus mollis, the national
flower of Greece, in honor of Prince Philip's heritage; eryngium for the Royal Marines;
campanula to represent gratitude and love; rosemary for remembrance; lavender, which
stands for devotion; and roses, since the queen's husband was born in June.
On the face of it, sending flowers when someone dies is a sweet and customary tradition. A
Few on Twitter recognized the gesture as such. One Twitter user wrote,
"She never stops surprising me. I admire her so much."
Another tweeted that,
"Meghan is gracious, handwriting her condolences with a lovely thought-out very personal wreath.”
But British media pundits were quick to speculate over why details of Meghan's funeral wreath
leaked to the press, while details of other wreaths at Prince Philip's funeral did not.
As royal historian, Marlene Koenig, told Page Six,
"The Royal family doesn't usually say, 'Well, this [wreath's] from Charles, this one's from
Andrew, this one's from Beatrice ... the only wreath of interest was the one placed on the
casket that was from Queen Elizabeth."
Koenig added:
"I think it was a little bit drawing attention back to [Prince Harry and Meghan] rather than
just not saying anything at all."
Many on Twitter agreed. One person tweeted,
"She just can't help herself. Me, me, me. It's quite sickening."
Another Twitter user wrote,
"Do you feel you got enough recognition for your wreath now Meghan? Did your PR work how
you wanted?"
Yet another critic tweeted,
"Just when I didn't think she could get lower, I found it utterly sick, as I would if it
happened at any funeral. The flowers are private, between you and the deceased. This was a final
nail in the coffin for poor PP."
A fourth went after her choice of flowers, pointing out that Markle's wreath was not
white, like others at the funeral. They tweeted,
"Meghan of course decided to choose flowers that wouldn't blend with the other wreaths.
But hers ended up looking like a fall wreath for a house front door."
Of course, Meghan Markle supporters were quick to point out that negative, Meghan Markle-focused
media coverage was inevitable, no matter how she chose to pay her respects for Prince Philip.
A Twitter user wrote,
"If ... it had transpired ... that Meghan had NOT sent a wreath. Run that scenario,
what would you say then?"
Meghan, Harry, and Archie, meanwhile, have been reunited in California. They are unlikely
to have read any of the Twitter critiques themselves, as none have personal social media
accounts to speak of. Check out one of our newest videos right here!
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