It was with "great sadness" that Prince Harry made the decision to withdraw from the British monarchy. In a video posted Sunday evening on the official Sussex Instagram account, the latter explained that he had had "no other choice". "The decision I made for my wife and I was not taken lightly," he told guests at a charity dinner in London.
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at tonight's dinner for supporters of Sentebale in London Video © SussexRoyal
A post shared by The Duke and Duchess of Sussex (@sussexroyal) on Jan 19, 2020 at 2:00 pm PST
On January 8, Harry, 35, and his wife Meghan, 38, revealed that they wanted to gain financial independence and settle in North America with their son Archie. Buckingham also announced on Saturday that the couple is renouncing their royal titles. So what do we know about the future of Harry and Meghan? We help you to take stock.
How will they be designated from now on?
They will now be designated as Harry and Meghan, and retain their title of Duke and Duchess of Sussex, granted by the Queen to Harry on the morning of his marriage to the American actress.
But for former royal press secretary Dickie Arbiter, "this will not prevent the Americans to designate them by this title if they want to," quoting the Wallis Simpson precedent. When King Edward VIII, uncle of the current queen, had abdicated in 1936 to marry this divorced American, she "did not receive the title of Royal Highness and yet, the Americans sometimes designated her as" such, details it in the Sun.
Harry can continue to be designated as "prince", since this is a title relating to his birth.
What are they going to live on?
Harry and Meghan announced on January 8 that they wanted to gain financial independence and settle for part of the year in North America, thereby renouncing the royal allowance granted to them by the Queen for their representational functions. This in fact represents only 5% of their income, the rest coming from a financial endowment that Prince Charles, Harry's father, pays to his children. The future of this endowment, estimated "last year at around 2.3 million pounds (2.7 million euros)" by the Sun , is still uncertain.
While these new provisions will take effect "in the spring", announced Buckingham Palace, the couple will have to find new means of subsistence, and substantial, because it has notably committed to reimburse the 2 million spent on public funds to renovate their residence in Windsor, the Frogmore Cottage.
The Sussexes will be able to capitalize on their glamorous image and Meghan's professional past: the former American television actress, who had stood out in the Suits series, has many contacts, from Oprah Winfrey to the former American presidential couple Obama, whose example she could follow. They have set up their own production company and signed a lucrative contract with Netflix, which now distributes their content. The responsible for the content of the streaming platform, Ted Sarandos, also declared himself interested in working with the Sussex on Sunday.
According to the PA agency, the duchess would also have signed a contract with Disney to double votes, but the benefits of this agreement will be donated to an elephant protection association, supported by Harry, whose future career is still entirely to be drawn. .
Can they go back?
Technically, Harry has given up on using his title of royal highness, but it has not been deleted. "In theory, his title of royal highness will always exist and there would be plenty of work for him" if he decides to return, explains the BBC, which estimates a "return would be possible", but "probably not under the same conditions ".
By withdrawing from his prominent role in the royal family, Harry also had to abandon his "official military engagements", according to his spokesman, including the post of Captain General of the Royal Navy. This function, which his grandfather Prince Philip had held for 65 years before passing the torch to him, will have to be taken over by someone else.
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