Yet their relationship is more complicated than the simple “friends or enemies” narrative that has often surrounded them. Over the years, both women have been connected to moments of warmth, tension and distance, while Meghan has repeatedly suggested that media coverage helped create a sharper divide between them.
When Meghan became engaged to Prince Harry, public interest in her relationship with Kate quickly grew. The two women were photographed together at royal events, and there were expectations that they might become close as sisters-in-law.
Behind the scenes, however, reports later suggested that their relationship never developed into a particularly close friendship. Accounts surrounding the Sussexes’ time as working royals described the pair as polite but not especially close, with differences in personality, lifestyle and circumstances making a deeper bond difficult.
One of the biggest moments in the story came during preparations for Meghan and Harry’s 2018 wedding. A disagreement involving Princess Charlotte’s bridesmaid dress later became the subject of intense speculation.
For years, reports circulated claiming that Meghan had made Kate cry during the dispute. Meghan directly rejected that version of events when she spoke to Oprah Winfrey in 2021.
Meghan said that the opposite had happened and explained that the incident had taken place only days before her wedding. According to her account, Kate was upset about an issue involving the flower-girl dresses, and the disagreement left Meghan in tears. Meghan also said that Kate subsequently apologized and brought flowers and a note.
Rather than describing the incident as an ongoing personal battle, Meghan said she had forgiven Kate and did not want to reveal unnecessary details about what had happened. Her main frustration, she explained, was that the public story had later portrayed her as the person who had caused Kate to cry.
The episode became even more complicated after Prince Harry published his memoir, Spare, in 2023. Harry provided additional details about the disagreement and described Meghan becoming extremely upset. His account also said Kate later apologized and brought flowers and a card.
The different accounts helped show why the relationship became such a sensitive subject. What may have started as a disagreement over wedding preparations eventually became a much larger public story about the relationship between the two women.
Meghan has also spoken about the way she believed she and Kate were treated differently by the press. During the Oprah interview, she questioned why similar behavior could receive very different coverage depending on which woman was involved.
She argued that the media appeared to favor a “hero and villain” storyline, rather than allowing both women to exist without being constantly compared. Meghan also made it clear that she did not want criticism of herself to automatically turn into hostility toward Kate.
That point is important because the public image of their relationship has often been shaped by comparisons between them. Their clothing, pregnancies, public appearances and royal roles were frequently placed side by side in media coverage. Meghan suggested that this constant comparison contributed to the perception that the two women were necessarily competing with one another.
Their relationship also appeared different depending on the setting. Public photographs sometimes showed Kate and Meghan standing together at major royal occasions, creating an appearance of unity. However, reports and later revelations suggested that their private relationship was considerably more distant.
The two couples were eventually separated geographically as well. Harry and Meghan moved away from their former royal base and ultimately settled in California, while William and Kate continued their senior royal responsibilities in Britain.
Their paths crossed again during significant royal occasions. One of the most notable moments came after the death of Queen Elizabeth II in 2022, when William, Kate, Harry and Meghan appeared together during a walkabout outside Windsor Castle. The appearance attracted enormous attention because it briefly placed the two couples side by side despite their well-publicized tensions.
For many royal watchers, however, the photographs did not necessarily mean that the underlying relationship had been repaired. The public appearance was widely viewed as an important gesture at a deeply emotional moment, rather than proof that all previous disagreements had disappeared.
What makes Princess Kate and Meghan Markle’s relationship particularly complicated is that there have been very few direct statements from Kate about the subject. Much of the public understanding has instead come from Meghan’s interviews, Harry’s memoir and reporting from royal correspondents.
Meghan’s own comments have generally presented a more nuanced picture than the constant feud narrative. She has spoken about being hurt by certain experiences while also saying that she had forgiven Kate and describing her as a good person.
That distinction matters. A difficult relationship does not automatically mean that two people are permanent enemies. In the case of Kate and Meghan, their story appears to involve a mixture of limited personal closeness, misunderstandings, media pressure and wider tensions between their husbands.
The relationship between Prince William and Prince Harry has also had a major influence on how Kate and Meghan have been viewed. As the brothers' relationship deteriorated, the space between their wives became part of the same wider royal-family story.
Ultimately, the most revealing comments about Princess Kate and Meghan Markle’s relationship have come from moments when the women themselves addressed the subject. Meghan’s Oprah interview remains particularly significant because she challenged one of the most persistent stories about the pair while emphasizing that she did not want the public to turn the women into opposing sides.
Years after Meghan joined the royal family, interest in their relationship remains strong. But the available accounts suggest something more complicated than a straightforward feud: two women who entered one of the world's most scrutinized families, struggled to develop a close relationship, experienced a highly public disagreement, and later found themselves at the center of a much larger royal-family divide.
Their own words, together with the accounts that followed, show why the relationship continues to attract attention — and why the reality behind the headlines has never been quite as simple as it first appeared.
Key Takeaways
- Princess Kate and Meghan Markle’s relationship has been closely watched since Meghan joined the royal family.
- Meghan publicly addressed the widely reported bridesmaid-dress dispute during her 2021 interview with Oprah Winfrey.
- Meghan said Kate apologized afterward and brought flowers and a note.
- Harry later gave more details about the disagreement in his memoir Spare.
- Despite several public appearances together, reports have described their relationship as more formal than close.
- Meghan has also pushed back against the idea that supporters must choose between her and Kate.
