Kate Middleton, the Princess of Wales, must obey five guidelines, but Meghan Markle, Duchess of Sussex, is not subject to the same constraints.
Despite Meghan and Prince Harry’s departure from their position as working royals in 2020, they remain members of the royal family.
Despite this, Meghan is able to circumvent the regulations, thanks to Kate’s position as a more senior member of the royal family.
She is married to Prince William, the future King, which entails a tight set of laws that do not apply to her sister-in-law.
Christmas Day invitations
According to Business Insider, Princess Kate was not allowed to attend Christmas Day celebrations at Sandringham until she married William, although Meghan was.
According to reports, ‘the royal family’s companions are normally not welcomed unless they are married’.
It said, “Kate joined for the first time in 2011 after marrying Prince William earlier that year. An exception was seemingly made for Meghan, as she was invited to join the church service after her engagement to Prince Harry in November 2017.”
The couple eventually got married in 2018.
Voting in elections
Members of the royal family are regarded to be politically neutral, and discussing politics in public is considered inappropriate.
Kate may have voted in elections prior to her marriage to William, but this is unlikely to have continued after then.
In a 2021 broadcast interview with TIME, Prince Harry stated: “Many of you may not know that I haven’t been able to vote in the UK my entire life,” emphasizing the gravity of the restriction.
Meghan, on the other hand, has been quite public about voting, and she voted in the 2020 US election, even posting a photo of herself wearing a ‘I Voted’ sticker.
Royal babies
There are many traditions surrounding royal babies.
New mothers in the royal family are expected to follow a variety of protocols, including standing for press shots on the hospital steps after giving birth and having a royal baptism.
Kate did the following for all three of her children, Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis, who donned a special christening gown that had been worn by previous generations of royal kids.
Meghan chose not to participate in the picture call, instead arranging for her own photographer two days after giving birth to her baby, Archie, in 2019.
Meghan and Harry welcomed their daughter, Lilibet, in 2021, but the birth was kept completely quiet, with no photocalls or royal christenings.
Royal style
Women royals are expected to observe particular dress guidelines, such as wearing hats to formal daytime gatherings and tiaras to formal evening functions.
Meghan was photographed after leaving the UK, looking extremely relaxed in her own clothes.
In her Netflix documentary Harry & Meghan, the Duchess revealed that she wore’muted tones’ as a working royal.
She said: “To my understanding, you can’t ever wear the same colour as Her Majesty, if there’s a group event. But then you also should never be wearing the same colour as one of the other more senior members of the family.”
Meghan added: “It was also so I could just blend in. I’m not trying to stand out here. There’s no version of me joining this family and trying to not do everything I could to fit in.
“I don’t want to embarrass the family.”
Taking selfies
In December 2017, Meghan was said to have informed a fan, “We’re not allowed to do selfies.”
Since relinquishing royal duties, Catherine and Harry have posed for several photos with members of the public.
Kate has also breached this guideline on several occasions.
In 2023, she took a selfie with a concerned admirer and told him, “Please don’t worry, it’s OK. We all get nervous.”
The video became popular on social media, and one fan commented, “Heart of gold.”
