The Duke and Duchess of Sussex haven’t lived in the UK since November/December 2019. That’s when they went to Canada and plotted their exit. At the Sandringham Summit in January 2020, different scenarios were suggested by courtiers and by Harry, but when it came down to it, Harry and Meghan were not offered the compromise they wanted, which was to be “half in” the institution, but able to live abroad and have some kind of security. They were told that wasn’t an option for them, that they would need to sink or swim. The courtiers and the Windsors believed that Meghan and Harry would sink, and that Harry would come crawling back to them without Meghan. Either that, or the Windsors genuinely wanted the Sussexes to die, which… was something that really could have happened. Anyway, just remember all of that whenever Salt Island gets performatively outraged about “the Sussexes could have lived in Canada or South Africa or New Zealand!” They offered, and that offer was rejected. Speaking of…

The Duchess of Sussex has said she’s happy to be back in her native California, but Prince Harry would rather have moved to a different continent. His friend, the celebrated primatologist Dame Jane Goodall, has revealed that he wanted the couple to live in Africa, where he has spent some of the happiest times in his life.

‘He wanted to bring Archie up in Africa, running barefoot with African children,’ she says of their three-year-old son. He and Meghan also have a daughter, Lilibet, aged 17 months.

Prince Harry’s advisers were said to be working on a ‘bespoke’ role for the couple, probably in Africa, that would combine some work on behalf of the Commonwealth along with charity work and a role promoting Britain. The plan had been drawn up by Sir David Manning, the former British ambassador to the U.S. and special adviser on constitutional and international affairs to Harry and Prince William. Of course, the plan was never put into action and the couple moved to North America before quitting royal duties. Had they moved to Africa, it could have made it more difficult for the Sussexes to sign lucrative deals with American companies such as Netflix, Spotify and BetterUp.

[From The Daily Mail]

Again, in 2019, there were many scenarios and plots. Prince William and his advisors were openly discussing the need to exile the Sussexes as William “prepared for kingship.” It was believed that William and his advisors didn’t want the Sussexes to be “exiled” in Canada or Australia because they would basically have their own royal courts in exile in those countries, thus the “send them to Africa” plan was loosely formed. I believe Harry associated the African continent with freedom, freedom from royal life, freedom from the British media, so yes, he saw himself raising his children outside of the royal system. Remarkable that he’s doing just that in Montecito, huh?

Photos courtesy of Backgrid.