Why did Harry and Meghan leave the Royal Family, and where do they get their money? (2024)

The Duke and duch*ess of Sussex left the UK after stepping back from official royal duties.

The couple has since launched various commercial ventures, including a new lifestyle brand headed by Meghan Markle called American Riviera Orchard.

Harry and Meghan met in 2016 and married in 2018. They stepped down as senior royals in January 2020.

Angry about media intrusion, they were frustrated that Buckingham Palace stopped them developing their "SussexRoyal" brand.

Harry remains a prince and is fifth in line to the throne.

The couple kept their Duke and duch*ess of Sussex titles, but are no longer addressed as his or her royal highness (HRH). Harry also gave up his military titles.

When Harry's father Charles became King, the couple's two children became Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet of Sussex.

Harry and Meghan moved to California in June 2020, saying they wanted space to raise Archie. Lilibet was born there in 2021.

The couple no longer has an official UK residence.

In early 2023, they were asked to vacate Frogmore Cottage, a Grade-II listed property on the Windsor estate.

In April 2024, documents filed to Companies House listed the US as the country where Harry is usually resident, instead of the UK.

The change was dated 29 June 2023, thought to be the date the couple formally left Frogmore Cottage.

The conservative US think tank The Heritage Foundation has raised questions about Harry's immigration status because of his previous comments about taking cocaine, marijuana and psychedelic mushrooms.

Drug use can block US visa applications.

On 8 May, the duke attended a service at St Paul's Cathedral in London to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Invictus Games, the sporting competition for injured servicemen and women which he helped found.

He did not see his father Charles or his brother William during his brief visit.

In February, he flew back for a 45-minute meeting with Charles after Buckingham Palace announced that the King was being treated for cancer.

The duke has also returned to London several times for his various court cases against newspaper publishers.

Harry attended the King's coronation in May 2023 without Meghan.

The duke and duch*ess both came back to the UK for the late Queen's Platinum Jubilee in June 2022, and her funeral in September of that year.

As working royals, they received 95% of their annual income from Harry's father, then Prince of Wales. The taxpayer-funded Sovereign Grant made up the other 5%.

When they stepped down as senior royals, King Charles gave them "a substantial sum" to help establish their new life.

Harry and Meghan set up the Archewell charitable foundation, external, and entered into a number of commercial arrangements with private companies.

In February 2024 the couple launched their Sussex.com website,, external which says they are "shaping the future through business and philanthropy".

American Riviera Orchard

In March 2024, Meghan launched what appeared to be a new lifestyle brand, American Riviera Orchard.

Little is known about the new venture, but in April 2024, pictures of branded jam jars circulated on social media, suggesting it may sell food products.

Television and podcasts

The Sussexes' media company, Archewell Productions, makes programmes for Netflix, under a deal thought to be worth millions of dollars.

In April 2024, Archewell said two new series were in production,, external one celebrating "the joys of cooking & gardening, entertaining, and friendship", and another exploring the world of professional polo.

The couple previously featured in the Harry and Meghan documentary series, where they talked about life in the Royal Family, and The Heart of Invictus series, which discussed the duke's emotional "unravelling" after military service in Afghanistan.

Archewell also made podcasts for Spotify under a contract thought to be worth $25m (£19.7m). The arrangement ended in June 2023.

In February 2024, Meghan announced a new podcast deal with Lemonada Media., external

Books

Harry's memoir, Spare, was published in January 2023.

It discussed his relationship with his brother and father, as well as his grief over the death of his mother, Princess Diana.

The book's publishers promised $1.5m (£1.18m) and £300,000 would be given to the Sentebale and WellChild charities.

Meghan wrote a children's book called The Bench in 2021.

Inheritance

William and Harry received the bulk of Princess Diana's £13m fortune when she died in 1997.

In an interview, Harry told Oprah Winfrey this money funded his family's move to the US.

He is also thought to have inherited millions from his great-grandmother, the Queen Mother.

It is not known whether the late Queen left him any money.

Acting

During her acting career, the duch*ess of Sussex was reportedly paid $50,000 (£40,000) for each episode of the legal drama Suits.

She appeared in more than 100 episodes.

After stepping back from official duties, the duke and duch*ess were no longer afforded the security arrangements provided for senior royals.

When Harry first left the UK, he said it would be too dangerous to bring his family back without adequate police protection and took the government to the High Court.

Home Office lawyers said the duke would still have publicly-funded police security in the UK, under "bespoke arrangements".

In late February 2024, the High Court ruled that the chosen approach "was, and is, legally sound".

An earlier separate court ruling rejected the prince's request to be allowed to pay privately for more substantial protection.

In April 2024, Harry's legal team said he would seek permission from the Court of Appeal to challenge the High Court decision.

Harry settled a phone hacking claim against Mirror Group Newspapers in February 2024.

His lawyer said the duke had been awarded "substantial" damages. He was also granted £140,600 in damages in another part of the case.

A number of other court cases are continuing, including:

In June 2024, a High Court judge ordered Harry to explain why messages which might be relevant to his legal case against the publisher of the Sun have been deleted.

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