Prince William was worried Prince Harry and Meghan Markle were rushing things (Image: Getty Images)
and ‘s whirlwind romance, which saw them engaged within a year of , was due to Meghan’s “biological clock ticking”, according to author Tina Brown.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex first met on a blind date in 2016, announced their engagement the following year, and tied the knot in a lavish ceremony at Windsor Castle in May 2018.
This rapid progression reportedly caused concern for , who had courted Kate Middleton for eight years before popping the question. He was said to have been “nervous” and feared that Meghan, nearing her mid-thirties, would struggle to adjust to Royal life in such a short span of time.
Despite these concerns, Harry was adamant about marrying quickly, as revealed in Tina Brown’s book The Palace Papers: Inside the House of Windsor. The author, who has previously edited Tatler and The New Yorker, also claimed that William was apprehensive about Meghan being unprepared for the intense scrutiny and harassment that comes with being a Royal. Harry apparently claimed he needed to marry Meghan rapidly as she was almost 35-years-old and her “biological clock was ticking”.
Harry and Meghan announcing their engagement (Image: Chris Jackson/Getty Images)
According to a new book, reportedly told his brother that he needed to marry “as quickly as possible” in order for her to receive the same police protection he did as a working Royal. But William was worried that Meghan was not prepared for the “scorching scrutiny and harassment” of being a Royal, Tina Brown told the .
Royal author Tom Bower made a similar claim in 2022, stating that Meghan had expressed a desire to have children after her first date with Harry. The couple, who relocated to the US in 2020 after stepping down from their senior Royal duties, are now proud parents to five-year-old Prince Archie and three-year-old Princess Lilibet, reports .
Meghan and harry in Colombia this year (Image: Archewell Foundation via Getty Images)
In a 2017 interview with presenter , Harry confessed that “the stars were aligned” when he met Meghan. He said: “The fact that I fell in love with Meghan so incredibly quickly was confirmation to me that all the stars were aligned, everything was just perfect. This beautiful woman just tripped and fell into my life, I fell into her life.”
Recalling the moment Harry proposed, Meghan shared: “Just a cosy night, it was – what we were doing just roasting chicken and having …” Harry interjected, adding: “Roasting a chicken, trying to roast a chicken.”
The couple stepped away from Royal life but follow their own path (Image: Getty Images)
reminisced about the proposal, saying: “Trying to roast a chicken and it just – just an amazing surprise, it was so sweet and natural and very romantic. He got on one knee.”
She confessed that she interrupted ‘s proposal with excitement, exclaiming: “Can I say yes now? ” Harry chimed in with his perspective: “She didn’t even let me finish, she said can I say yes, can I say yes and then were was hugs and I had the ring in my finger and I was like can I – can I give you the ring? She goes – oh yes the ring. So no it was – it was a really nice moment, it was just the two of us and I think managed to catch – catch her by surprise as well.”