Queen Elizabeth 'Saw Right Through' Meghan Markle — Called Her Marriage to Prince Harry 'A Complete Catastrophe' Just Weeks Before Her Death, It’s Claimed
Queen Elizabeth II thought Meghan Markle and Prince Harry’s marriage was doomed before her death.
July 11 2025, Published 7:37 p.m. ET
While the late Queen Elizabeth II lived up to monarchy standards by being poised and reserved in public, sources claimed she didn’t hold back when it came to voicing her opinion on grandson Prince Harry’s relationship with Meghan Markle behind closed doors.
A royal insider has claimed the queen “saw straight through Meghan” and called the couple a “catastrophe” before her death in September 2022, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
Sharp Tongue
Sources said Elizabeth had a sharp tongue when talking about Harry and Meghan in front of guests at Balmoral.
While Harry, 40, and Meghan, 43, have insisted they had a warm and supportive relationship with the late monarch, a royal author has insisted that wasn’t exactly true.
Author Sally Bedell Smith claims Elizabeth had an unusually sharp tongue when it came to discussing Harry and Meghan’s marriage in the weeks before her death.
A group of guests at Balmoral Castle in Scotland were said to be given a front-row seat to Elizabeth’s opinions about the couple.
Sources claimed the queen said ‘Harry meeting Meghan had become a complete catastrophe.’
One source recalled: “It was out of character for the Queen...but she saw straight through Meghan.
“At the drinks before the dinner, a small group were talking to the Monarch and she explained that Harry meeting Meghan had become a 'complete catastrophe.’
The source added: “By this point we all knew the queen's health was in decline and she had months left, she seemed regretful about how things had panned out.”
Despite trying to stop Megxit, the queen issued a statement supporting the couple in 2020.
As RadarOnline.com previously reported, at the time the Balmoral conversation went down, Harry and Meghan had given up their full-time royal duties.
The Sussexes made the sensational decision to step away from royal life and moved to Meghan’s native California in June 2020, a little over two years after their royal wedding in May 2018.
When news of Harry and Meghan’s decision made headlines – and was famously dubbed Megxit – the late queen issued a statement, saying: “Harry, Meghan and (son) Archie will always be much-loved members of my family.”
‘Besotted and Weak’
Insiders said Elizabeth called her grandson ‘besotted and weak’ before his 2018 wedding.
While Megxit was already chock-full of drama, the couple added fuel to the fire when they decided to sit down with Oprah Winfrey in 2021 and candidly discussed their side of the story and reasons for leaving the UK, including accusations of racism towards Meghan from royal family members and disregard for her mental health amid intense press scrutiny.
But sources claim tensions were running high well before Meghan walked down the aisle to Harry at St. George’s Chapel.
Elizabeth allegedly said Harry was “besotted and weak” in the weeks leading up to the wedding and was concerned Meghan manipulated him into the union.
Her first cousin reportedly said: “We hope but don’t quite think she is in love. We think she engineered it all.”
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Smith further claimed Elizabeth attempted to seek a compromise with the couple in 2020 when they first announced their plans to leave their royal duties behind.
Elizabeth was said to try her best to put a stop to Megxit, but Harry and Meghan refused, citing a desire for financial independence and a life away from the UK press.
