UK: did Prince Harry and Meghan Markle really get married in secret?
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex claimed in their big TV interview on Sunday (March 7th) that they had been secretly married by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, three days before their big media ceremony. The latter denied their words, in an interview with Italian media La Republicca on Wednesday March 31.
The revelations, which continue to tear the royal family apart, also wreak havoc on the Church of England. During their interview "confession" with the American producer Oprah Winfrey, broadcast on Sunday March 7 and followed by tens of millions of viewers around the world, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle assured to have been married in secret by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, a few days before the ceremony celebrated with great pomp on May 19, 2018, at St. George's Chapel in Windsor.
You know, we got married three days before our [official] wedding. No one knows this. We called the archbishop and just said to him: "Listen, this thing, this show is for the whole world, but we want our union between us" ", then assured on the screen the princess, pregnant with her second child. . In a later footage, her husband Harry clarified that this secret union, which allegedly took place in the couple's garden, had taken place without witnesses, with the sole presence of the Primate of the Anglican Church. These assertions have been constantly questioned by members of the institution ever since.
"Private conversation"
“Justin [Welby] had a private conversation with the couple in their backyard about the ceremony, but I can assure you that no weddings took place before the nationally televised event. Justin does not do private weddings, ”said Tuesday March 16 in the columns of the Daily Mail the Reverend Mark Edwards, vicar of St Matthew's Church, Dinnington (Yorkshire), and St Cuthbert's Church, in Brunswick (Tyne and Wear).
The latter claims to have been in contact with a member of staff at Lambeth Palace, the official residence of the Archbishop of Canterbury, who confirmed to him that the meeting between the princely couple and the monk did not resemble an exchange of vows. The declaration of the royal couple, who now live in the region of Los Angeles (California), places "the priests in a difficult position", still considered the priest, insofar as it "calls into question the rules established" by the Anglican Church.
"Certified place of worship"
Indeed, the institution requires the presence of at least two witnesses to certify the validity of a marriage, which must also take place in a "certified place of worship", or in a building with a special license. , like a hospital. “Should there be witnesses, licenses and legality or is it now just a matter of making arrangements with members of the clergy? Mark Edwards still worried.
Where does the truth lie? A source, quoted by the Telegraph, indicates that the Anglican Communion Primate had "probably just prayed" with the Sussexes, without marrying them. “It was not a marriage. It couldn't have been, "Canon Reverend Giles Fraser, Rector of Saint Mary Newington Parish in London, said to the local press," it was probably a blessing. But they were legally married in Windsor ”. On the princely couple's marriage certificate, it is clearly stated that the sacrament was received there on May 19.
Regarding the event three days earlier, “[Meghan] has the right to consider it her marriage if she wishes. Americans are much less concerned with the specifics of marriage law than the English clergy, "Reverend Tiffer Robinson, Church of England vicar in Suffolk, said on Twitter.
" No comment "
Pressed to speak out on the issue, the Primate of the Anglican Church had chosen to remain silent. But in an interview with Italian media La Repubblica on Wednesday March 31, he firmly denied these comments. “I had several private and pastoral meetings with the Duke and Duchess before their marriage,” explained the Archbishop, “the legal marriage was held on Saturday (May 19). I signed the marriage certificate, which is a legal document, and I would have committed a serious crime if I had signed it knowing that it was false ”.
“The legal marriage did take place on Saturday,” he insisted, “but I will not reveal what happened during other meetings”. Across the Channel, requests for private marriages had skyrocketed in the wake of Meghan and Harry's revelations.
