‘Harry and Meghan’s legal marriage took place on Saturday, Archbishop of Canterbury said

The Archbishop of Canterbury has dismissed the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s claim that he married them in a secret ceremony before their wedding at Windsor Castle.

Breaking his silence on what the couple told Oprah Winfrey three weeks ago, Justin Welby said he signed Harry and Meghan’s marriage certificate the day millions watched them get married.

The legal marriage took place on Saturday May 19, 2018 at St George’s Chapel, he said. In her interview, Meghan raised her eyebrows when she told Miss Winfrey that she and Harry were married ‘just the two of us in our backyard with the Archbishop of Canterbury’.

But the 65-year-old told an Italian newspaper yesterday: ‘The legal marriage took place on Saturday. ”

He was asked ‘what happened with Meghan and Harry? Did you really marry them three days before the official wedding?

But then he added: ‘I had a number of private and pastoral meetings with the Duke and Duchess before the wedding.

“The legal marriage took place on Saturday. I signed the marriage certificate, which is a legal document, and I would have committed a serious criminal offense if I had signed it knowing it was false.

“So you can do whatever you like with it. But the legal marriage was on Saturday. But I won’t say what happened in other meetings.

Harry and Meghan, who have now been completely relieved of their royal duties, backed down on their claim for a private ceremony in a statement last week.

It had drawn heavy suspicion, in part because a legal marriage in the UK requires two witnesses.

A spokesperson for the couple told US website The Daily Beast: ‘The couple exchanged personal vows a few days before their official / legal marriage on May 19. ”

An exchange of vows in the backyard is not a marriage. Despite this, Harry intervened during Oprah’s interview, adding that it was ‘just the three of us’.

The Archbishop’s comments yesterday, without categorically denying a private ceremony, dispel any doubt as to when and where the couple legally tied the knot.

Previously, he had refused to speak up as the pressure mounted on him to debunk the claim.

A spokesperson for the archbishop’s office said last week that he “does not comment on personal or pastoral matters.” But other clergymen got involved.

Reverend Mark Edwards said he had contacted the Archbishop’s office to “ seek clarification ” following the claims.

Mr Edwards, vicar of St Matthew’s Church in Dinnington and St Cuthbert’s Church in Brunswick, Tyne and Wear, said a member of staff at Lambeth Palace told him: ‘Justin doesn’t do weddings private.

“Meghan is an American, she doesn’t understand.

“ Justin had a private conversation with the couple in the garden about the wedding, but I can assure you that no wedding took place before the nationally televised event. ”

Archbishop Welby’s first public comment on the matter was in an interview yesterday with Italian newspaper La Repubblica while on tour to promote his new book Reimagining Britain: Foundations For Hope.

In it, he echoed the book’s widely varying views on topics such as the pandemic, vaccine nationalism, Northern Ireland, the Muhammad cartoons and free speech, racism and claimants. asylum in the UK and Pope Francis.

The former industrialist, who sits in the House of Lords, did not comment on the accuracy of any other subject mentioned in the couple’s US television interview.

He discussed racism, but avoided any mention of Meghan’s claims about speculation about her son Archie’s skin color.

Following the interview, Buckingham Palace issued a statement on behalf of the Queen saying ‘Memories may vary’, with reference to allegations of racism and other issues.

The Archbishop of Canterbury warns culture cancellation is a ‘huge threat’ to the future of the Church of England as he defends the right to free speech in the wake of the cartoon of Prophet Muhammad

By Jack Elsom for MailOnline

The Archbishop of Canterbury has denounced the creeping trend of cancellation of culture as a “ huge threat ” to the future of the Church of England.

Justin Welby also defended the right to free speech after a teacher was suspended for showing his class a cartoon of the Prophet Muhammad.

In a rare intervention, the Church leader waded through the row engulfing school in Batley, West Yorkshire, where the teacher went into hiding after furious protests from Muslim parents.

He told Italian newspaper La Repubblica: “ In some parts of the world you have to be very careful what you say because people feel very, very strongly. But in this country, I think, we have to keep freedom of speech.

Welby pointed out that while many Muslim leaders in the UK were “very upset” by the cartoon, many had urged not to respond with “violence and threats”.

“In other words, exercise your freedom of expression, but do not prevent other people from exercising their freedom of expression,” the archbishop added.

He further criticized the culture of cancellation and those who attempt to erase the history of Britain.

Statues of controversial figures have been targeted by activists, and last year a Bristol monument to slave trader Edward Colston was memorably knocked down.

Last year, the Church announced that it would conduct a review of the statues at its sites.

But Welby said: ‘We cannot erase the past. It’s impossible. We need to learn from it sometimes, often, always.

“We have to repent of this quite often. But we cannot erase it. We cannot undo history. We cannot cancel the differences of opinion.

The Archbishop noted that this was an alarming trend developing in British universities, where controversial speakers lacked a platform.

He added: “ Especially for universities it seems very, very dangerous to me because you start by overriding some views that you don’t like and very quickly overriding any that don’t agree. . It is a very dangerous process. ”

On Brexit, Welby also said he was a ‘Remainer’ but not a ‘Remoaner’ and called vaccine nationalism a ‘huge danger’.

Relations between the EU and the UK have been strained in recent months as Brussels tries to salvage its failed jab deployment, even threatening to block exports of doses to Britain.