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An actress and lifestyle blogger before she met Prince Harry, Meghan Markle’s previous experiences came into play during her 2018 tour of Australia, New Zealand, Tonga and Fiji.
In many ways, it seemed like Meghan Markle was entering an impossible situation when she married Prince Harry in May. No matter what she did, she would be seen as an American outsider in the British press, her every move scrutinized to an absurd degree, her every outfit or gesture compared immediately to either that of her new sister-in-law, Kate Middleton, or to any number of the royal women who had come before her.
And in her first few months of her Duchess of Sussex-dom, though they went fairly smoothly, Markle was accused multiple times of “breaking protocol” or committing some nearly invisible “faux pas.” She closed a door on her own! She isn’t wearing a hat when she should be wearing a hat! She shows P.D.A. with Harry!!!!!!
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry, Sydney 2018. Image credit: Getty Images
All the while, Markle—at least publicly—appeared to take it all, even as her father and half sister added additional tabloid drama to the mix, in stride. And on the royal tour she and Prince Harry just completed, a 16-day sprint across Australia, New Zealand, Fiji, and Tonga, Markle seemed more assured than ever in her brand-new royal role.
Just a few months into life as a duchess, and with her first child already on the way, The Duchess is turning the role into something very much its own—incorporating aspects of her previous jobs (as actress, advocate and lifestyle blogger) and making it clear she is going to use the platform to speak out about the causes she cares about.
Before Markle was the Duchess of Sussex, of course, she was an actress on Suits, and she also had a lifestyle blog, the Tig, and a well-curated Instagram account, all with a sort of Gwyneth Paltrow-esque vibe. Much of that “Tig” Markle, in a literal sense, is now behind her—the website, and her social-media accounts, were wiped ahead of her royal wedding—but that essence does seems to be shining through more and more as she finds her royal footing.
Her first solo project, after all, was the publishing of a cookbook with victims of the Grenfell Tower fire, after she spent much time with the women affected working on the recipes. And the “standout” moments from the tour all seemed to have a sense of whimsy, spontaneity, and intimacy about them, Instagram-friendly moments that are now immediately and automatically shared with the world.
On her second day in Australia, jet-lag be damned, Markle reportedly stayed up late in their accommodation—Sydney’s Admiralty House—baking banana bread for the group of farmers she and Prince Harry would be visiting the next day (she incorporated chocolate chips and ginger into the recipe, but the Palace, frustratingly, refused to share it). Later on in the trip, she asked the aides to bring some leftover treats from one of the venues out for the children waiting outside to enjoy. When a young boy handed her a “pasta necklace” that he had made himself at a particular stop, she put it right on; one could imagine an alternate universe where she would have Instagrammed the necklace, maybe even tagging the boy who made it for her.
Markle also made three public speeches over the course of the tour, an unusual amount of public speaking from royals who are so often seen but not heard. She spoke about causes that she has championed in the past, including female empowerment and women’s suffrage.
While she has a background as both a performer and someone committed to advocacy work, she now has a platform of a vastly different scale, and she’s embraced it with remarkable ease. Instead of waiting a bit to begin making regular solo speeches, she’s immediately begun speaking about causes close to her heart—and, while not political, exactly, causes that are more pointed than the average run-of-the-mill royal talking point. Markle seems to be sending a message that she is going to discuss what’s important to her, and use her platform in an active and intentional way.
Meghan Markle on the royal tour, New Zealand, 2018. Image credit: Getty Images
And in the moments of the tour when The Duchess wasn’t speaking, she made sure her clothes spoke for her. The Duchess of Sussex changed multiple times a day, wearing more than 30 outfits over the entirety of the royal tour. That she was newly pregnant also proved an added challenge in terms of determining her wardrobe: some of her looks were definitely meant to accentuate the “bump,” as Prince Harry would refer to it during an address later in the tour, whereas others seemed to cover it up.
For the most part, Markle was savvy in terms of mixing in Australian designers (almost all of whom saw major spikes in their sales), and eco-friendly brands, like the Rothy’s flats she wore for one outdoor trip. She worked in the major labels, too, representing Givenchy, Burberry, Stella McCartney, and more, too. For this stage of her public life, at least, she seems committed to playing it pretty safe.
There was a lot of white and navy and black, often a solid-coloured trench or overcoat, with a few notable outliers, like the black and white Oscar de la Renta she wore in Sydney or the pink dress she wore in Fiji. She has come far from the ripped jeans she wore for her first public outing with Prince Harry, back in 2017 for the Toronto Invictus Games, though there is still a pretty low-key feel to her wardrobe choices, while also a sense that she is still experimenting with what exactly she wants her “royal look” to be.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex were warmly embraced at every stop, and Markle appeared to be fully embraced; crowds chanted her name, sang the Suits theme song, held up gifts in every direction, making her feel every bit the arriving royal, if not a superhero. There were two notable moments when Markle came off particularly “human,” events verging slightly off-script—when crowd-management issues forced her security detail to cut a visit in Fiji short, and when she stepped off the plane in Tonga with a tag still visible on her Self-Portrait dress.
And yet, the confidence she exhibits—perhaps it’s that acting background—makes even those sorts of “missteps” seem somehow part of the plan. One can imagine a “Regina George” sort of effect taking place, where within weeks, women and men worldwide decide to stop cutting off the tags of their own clothes.
It will be interesting, and telling, to see what comes next. Back in London, the tour behind her, her first project a success (the charity cookbook was a best-seller), Markle will presumably be able to hone in on the causes and initiatives she is most interested in, carving out a path for herself in the way that Kate Middleton has been able to over these past several years.
If the tour is any indication, she will also find ways to incorporate that Tig spirit—the, at the risk of bringing up Princess Diana comparisons, “People’s Princess”–esque moments—where she engages with the community. During the royal tour, she stopped at one point to speak to a woman who had messaged with Markle on Instagram before she became a duchess. It was a dynamic moment, her past coming to bear on the present. Naturally, Markle handled it skillfully, not fazed in the slightest. She embraced the young woman, and let her know that, of course, she remembered her.
This story was first published by VanityFair.com.
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