On their own. Prince Harry and his wife, Duchess Meghan, have officially split royal households from Prince William and his wife, Duchess Kate, nearly one month after speculation of separation between the royals began.
“[Queen Elizabeth II] has agreed to the creation of a new household for The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, following their marriage in May last year,” Kensington Palace tells Us Weekly in a statement. “The household, which will be created with the support of the queen and The Prince of Wales, will be established in the spring”
The statement continued, “This long-planned move will ensure that permanent support arrangements for the duke and duchess’ work are in place as they start their family and move to their official residence at Frogmore Cottage.”
Harry, 34, and Meghan, 37, also got permission from the queen, 92, to move their family office from London’s Kensington Palace, where Kate, 37, and William, 36, live, to Buckingham Palace, Queen Elizabeth II’s residence.
“Their Royal Highnesses will appoint new communications staff, who will form part of the Buckingham Palace communications team and report to The Queen’s Communications Secretary, Donal McCabe,” the statement added. “Kensington Palace will continue to support Their Royal Highnesses until that team is in place.”
Frogmore Cottage is located in Windsor, England, and served as the backdrop of Meghan and Harry’s engagement photos. The pair also hosted a private reception at the cottage after they tied the knot in May 2018.
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, for their part, will keep their office in Kensington Palace, where they live with their three children: Prince George, 5, Princess Charlotte, 3, and Prince Louis, 10 months.
The move comes just weeks before the Suits alum (née Markle) is expected to give birth to her first child with the Duke of Sussex. The duchess previously revealed she is due in late April or early May and wants the child to be a feminist.
“I had seen this documentary on Netflix about feminism and one of the things they said during pregnancy is, ‘I feel the embryonic kicking of feminism,’” Meghan said during an International Women’s Day panel on Friday, March 8. “I loved that, so boy or girl, or whatever it is, we hope that’s the case.”
