Fireworks weren't the only sparks flying on the Fourth of July a decade ago. For Meghan Markle and Prince Harry, Independence Eve and Day 2016 marked the start of their love story.
While America celebrates its 250th birthday this Fourth of July weekend, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex will be marking a special milestone of their own: the tenth anniversary of their back-to-back first dates.
A sweet start
The couple first met in-person in London on July 3, 2016. Harry opened up about their first date in his 2023 memoir, Spare. The Duke recalled in the book arriving late to the date at Soho House 76 Dean Street, where they had a "great chat for about an hour." Later that evening, Meghan called the Prince and asked if he'd like to get dinner since she was leaving soon. "I'm sure he thought it was so forward and American. I'm sure he told me it was so forward and American," she confessed in Netflix's Harry & Meghan.
The couple returned to the same spot for their second date the next day on Independence Day, with Harry, this time, arriving before Meghan and bearing gifts. "She opened the box. Cupcakes. Red, white and blue cupcakes, to be exact. In honor of Independence Day," he penned in Spare. "I said something about the Brits having a very different view of Independence Day from the Yanks, but, oh, well. She said they looked amazing."
© Meghan MarkleDuring their second date, the pair cozied up next to each other for a photo that they have since publicly shared. "We just wanted to capture the feeling of just sitting in that little restaurant and going 'Oh my gosh, I think we're gonna give it a go,'" Meghan said in their docuseries.
Harry added: "That was when it just hit me. I was like, 'Okay, this girl, this woman is amazing.' She's everything that I've been looking for and she's so comfortable and so relaxed in my company."
Botswana date number three
Weeks after their first dates in London, the pair took their budding relationship abroad to Botswana for date number three. "We camped out with each other under the stars," Harry later shared in their engagement interview. "She came and joined me for five days out there, which was absolutely fantastic. So then we were really by ourselves. Which was crucial to me to make sure that we had a chance to get to know each other."
Harry revealed in Spare that "there were separate bedrolls, the result of much worry and many conversations," noting that he did not want to "be presumptuous."
© Meghan MarkleThe Duke of Sussex has described every moment of that week in Africa with Meghan as a "revelation and a blessing." When he returned home to Nottingham Cottage in London, he admittedly wondered whether he had found the one.
"I'd always told myself that there were firm rules about relationships, at least when it came to royalty, and the main one was that you absolutely must date a woman for three years before taking the plunge. How else could you know about her? How else could she know about you—and your royal life? How else could both of you be sure that this was what you wanted, that it was a thing you could endure together? It wasn't for everybody," he wrote in Spare.
"But Meg seemed the shining exception to this rule. All rules. I knew her straightaway, and she knew me. The true me. Might seem rash, I thought, might seem illogical, but it's true: For the first time, in fact, I felt myself to be living in truth."
Going public with their romance
While their romance started in the summer of 2016, it did not become public until that Halloween. "I knew that the only way that this could possibly work is by keeping it quiet for as long as possible," Harry said in their Netflix series.
Meghan called their relationship a "guarded treasure" at the beginning, pointing out that "it was long-distance" from the start. "Everything was just texts and FaceTimes. We just talked for hours and it just felt exciting, which is so weird because it wasn't exciting in the way that I think people would assume that it would be. It was just relaxed and easy," the Duchess said. "We just got to know each other."
Harry's powerful statement
The couple's relationship was officially confirmed on November 8, 2016 in a statement released by Harry's communications secretary, condemning the "wave of abuse and harassment" that Meghan had been subjected to.
"Prince Harry is worried about Ms. Markle's safety and is deeply disappointed that he has not been able to protect her," the statement read in part. "It is not right that a few months into a relationship with him that Ms. Markle should be subjected to such a storm. He knows commentators will say this is 'the price she has to pay' and that 'this is all part of the game.' He strongly disagrees. This is not a game — it is her life and his."
"He has asked for this statement to be issued in the hopes that those in the press who have been driving this story can pause and reflect before any further damage is done. He knows that it is unusual to issue a statement like this, but hopes that fair-minded people will understand why he has felt it necessary to speak publicly," the statement continued.
Marriage and family
Harry and the former Suits star went on to get engaged the following November. The Prince popped the question at home at Nottingham Cottage with a ring designed with diamonds from a bracelet that belonged to his late mother, Princess Diana, and a main diamond from Botswana. "It's beautiful, and he designed it. It's incredible," Meghan said of the ring in their 2017 engagement interview.
The couple wed on May 19, 2018 at St George's Chapel in a ceremony attended by Queen Elizabeth, Prince Philip, Prince William, the Princess of Wales and more members of the royal family.
© NetflixFive months after their royal wedding, it was announced that Meghan and Harry were expecting their first child. Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor, now known as Prince Archie, was born on May 6, 2019. Within the first year of their son's life, the Duke and Duchess stepped back from royal duties and moved to California. The couple's second child, Princess Lilibet, formerly known as Lilibet Diana Mountbatten-Windsor, arrived on June 4, 2021 in Santa Barbara.
Although Meghan and Harry are no longer working members of the royal family, their work keeps them in the spotlight. However, when it comes to their kids, the Duchess is selective about what she posts, often sharing photos that conceal Archie and Lilibet's faces. In an episode of their Netflix series Harry & Meghan, the Duchess said: "We've been really conscious of protecting our kids as best as we can and also understanding the role that they play in this really historical family."
Harry added, "As a dad, and as parents, I think consent is a really key piece to this, that if you have children, it should be your consent as to what you share."
© Meghan MarkleLilibet and Archie are now part of a sweet tradition that began all those years ago on their parents' second date on the Fourth of July. Meghan commemorated the holiday in 2025 with a photo of a cupcake Harry brought to their date, along with a throwback selfie of the two of them and cupcakes she had made. "Our second date was the 4th of July 2016 and H brought me cupcakes to celebrate," she captioned the images. "Now, all these years later, our two children are in on the tradition. Happy Independence Day! May your day be as sweet as these cupcakes."
Ten years on, the sparks between the Duke and Duchess of Sussex haven't stopped.
