The Duchess of Sussex has been described as a "fighter" in a new book which delves into the lives of royal aides.
Speaking to several royal staff for his latest publication, Yes Ma’am: The Secret Life of Royal Servants, Tom Quinn says that former actress Meghan must have felt looked down on by courtiers when she married into the royal family.
In a serialisation for The Times, he writes: "Some people can cope with this — Kate Middleton is perhaps the supreme example — but others try to fight back, which is what Meghan clearly did.
'You've got to hand it to her,' a former member of her staff said. 'She really is a fighter.'"
Meghan, who had her own career and philanthropic work, joined a centuries-old institution when she married Prince Harry in 2018.
The Duchess even said in their engagement interview she didn't "grow up with the same understanding of the royal family" and that she hadn't looked up her future husband online when they began dating.
"Everything that I’ve learned about him, I learned through him. As opposed to having grown up around different news stories, or tabloids, or whatever else," she said.
© GettyThe new book, set for release on 18 February claims that Harry "had spent little time explaining exactly how strange and demanding his family really are" and that Meghan "disliked the hierarchy".
The Duchess is described as a "moderniser by nature" and "someone who wanted to get things done and change the status quo" but that wasn't how things were run within the palace.
The book adds that she "felt constrained by protocol" and wasn't used to having everything done for her by staff.
© ShutterstockAnother former member of Kensington Palace communications team described the Duchess as "very straightforward and matter-of-fact".
Another source added: "They [the older, public school-educated advisers] really had it in for Meghan and, to be fair to her, she really stood up to them. But, of course, if you make waves in the royal family, the senior royals will always back the courtiers, because in many cases the senior royals have been friends with the courtiers since childhood."
© GettyHarry and Meghan stepped back as senior royals in 2020 and have been open about their struggles behind palace walls, including their complicated relationship with the King and Queen, and the Prince and Princess of Wales.
Ill-tempered royals
While one former staffer said that Harry was "one of the easiest and nicest" to work for, he was also prone to flashes of irritation.
"I remember once in his private apartments I'd muddled something — some of his papers on the desk or something. He was immediately angry and it was out of proportion to the problem, or at least I thought it was," the aide told the author.
© GettyIt's claimed that Prince Andrew reportedly insisted that a member of staff be transferred because he disliked a mole on a man's face, and moved another for wearing a nylon tie. A retired member of Buckingham Palace staff also says that Prince Edward criticised his driver for looking too often in his rear-view mirror.
© GettyOther revelations in the book allege that Charles and Prince William "are prone to tantrums if things are not done to their liking" and that Kate "calms [William] down when he gets a bit fractious".
Kensington Palace declined to comment on the book.
