Whispers of discord within the Royal Family had long circulated, yet few anticipated the raw honesty would emerge straight from Prince Harry himself.
In his memoir Spare, the Duke of Suss*x peels back the curtain on the private tensions that shattered the façade of unity just before his wedding to Meghan Markle.
Behind the palace’s ornate walls, a storm of text messages between Meghan and Kate Middleton revealed more than just a disagreement over flower girl dresses—it unveiled the fragile, simmering dynamics threatening to unravel the royal household.
In Spare, Harry spares no detail, offering an unprecedented look into the fractures growing within the family, especially in the tense days leading to the 2018 royal wedding.
One particularly revealing moment involved a clash over the flower girl attire. According to Harper’s Bazaar, just days before the ceremony, Kate messaged Meghan with mounting frustration: “Charlotte’s dress is too big, too long, too baggy.” She added that her daughter had been left in tears after trying it on at home.
Meghan, maintaining composure amid rising pressure, reminded Kate that a tailor was already waiting at Kensington Palace that morning to make any necessary adjustments to all the dresses. “Could you please take Charlotte to get it altered like the other moms?” she gently suggested.
Yet Kate pushed back, insisting all the dresses should be completely remade—citing the opinion of her own wedding dress designer, Sarah Burton of Alexander McQueen, to back her stance.
The tension escalated as Meghan, already strained by her father’s unfolding media controversy, sought empathy. Harry recounted Meghan asking Kate if she truly understood what she was going through. Kate acknowledged the situation but remained unyielding, retorting, “And the wedding is in four days!”
Trying to de-escalate, Meghan responded, “I’m not sure what else to say. If the dress doesn’t fit, please take Charlotte to see Ajay—he’s been waiting all day.” Kate’s final reply was a terse, “Fine.”
Harry revealed the emotional aftermath: upon returning home, he found Meghan in tears, overwhelmed by the ordeal. However, when the incident leaked months later, tabloids distorted the story, falsely portraying Meghan as the one who had made Kate cry.
In December 2018, all four—Harry, Meghan, William, and Kate—met discreetly at Nottingham Cottage to clear the air. During this tense meeting, Kate reportedly confessed, “I know, Meghan, that I was the one who made you cry.” Despite this candid admission, the public narrative never shifted.
Harry described Kate’s demeanor as “embarrassed,” while William’s support came across as vague and diplomatic. The Suss*xes were left wondering who had spread the misleading version of events.
Eventually, Harry claimed William admitted he “might have” shared the disagreement with their father, King Charles III, and Queen Camilla during a dinner while Harry and Meghan were on their Australian tour—a revelation that stunned the couple.
🔹 Final Thoughts
What started as a seemingly minor dispute over flower girl dresses evolved into one of the most notorious royal controversies in recent memory.
To the public, it was a drama of tears and tension; to the Suss*xes, it marked a pivotal moment exposing the deep cracks in their faith toward the monarchy. Prince Harry’s candid disclosures offer a rare glimpse into the private pressures behind palace walls, leaving the world to wonder—how much of the royal story has ever truly been the full truth?