14 February 2024 , 11:23
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Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's new website using their Sussex titles has caused a few royal ripples.
The decision to rebrand their homepage as 'Sussex.com' came as a surprise to Buckingham Palace - and questions have been asked on whether it is a breach of their agreement with the late Queen.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex previously detailed their commercial and charitable endeavours on their Archewell website.
Last night, the Daily Mail reported that sources in the royal household feel that the change veers dangerously close to using their royal status for commercial gain. Others described it as a breach of the agreement, 'if not in letter, certainly in spirit'.
The new homepage for 'The Office of Prince Harry and Meghan, The Duke and Duchess of Sussex' went live on Monday evening - and one royal expert has speculated why it only features Meghan Markle's coat of arms - rather than a joint one.
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Richard Fitzwilliams told the Sun that it is a loophole to get around Queen Elizabeth II banning their "SussexRoyal" brand when they moved to the US. And he said it "advertises a couple whose best future could be behind them".
He blasted: "They have every right to use the coat of arms, but this involves using loopholes to effectively bring back SussexRoyal and exploit their royal status. They have caused the family tremendous amounts of damage.
The pair have been criticised for their use of royal titles and branding"The only way they made money was by using their royal links on their Netflix docuseries and Harry's book Spare. Since Charles was diagnosed with cancer they cannot attack the Royal Family. But if this is the best they can do, who's giving them advice? It's rather boring. It's quite puzzling."
A source close to the royals hit back at criticism over their decision to use the titles, after previously eschewing them. They said: 'Prince Harry and Meghan are the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. That is a fact. It is their surname and family name.'
When the couple stepped back as working royals, it was agreed they couldn't use their royal status for commercial gain - and they decided to launch Archewell.
The name was inspired by their son Archie – combining “arche”, the Greek word meaning source of action, and “well” as “a plentiful source or supply; a place we go to dig deep”.
The new website links to the couple’s non-profit organisation the Archewell Foundation and their production company Archewell Productions.
On their new website, Prince Harry's bio says: "Prince Harry, The Duke of Sussex is a humanitarian, military veteran, mental health advocate, and environmental campaigner. He has dedicated his adult life to advancing causes that he is passionate about and that advance permanent change for people and places." It promotes his new memoir as a tale "of his life told with compassion, vulnerability, and unflinching honesty."
Her bio adds: "Meghan, The Duchess of Sussex is a feminist and champion of human rights and gender equity. Her lifelong advocacy for women and girls remains a constant thread in her humanitarian and business ventures. She has been named one of the most influential women in the world in rankings including TIME Magazine’s Most Influential People, The Financial Times’ 25 Most Influential Women, Variety Power of Women, and British Vogue’s Vogue 25."
In 2020, a spokeswoman confirmed they would ditch the 'SussexRoyal' branding: "While the duke and duchess are focused on plans to establish a new non-profit organisation, given the specific UK government rules surrounding use of the word royal, it has been therefore agreed that their non-profit organisation, when it is announced this spring, will not be named Sussex Royal Foundation.
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“The Duke and Duchess of Sussex do not intend to use ‘Sussex Royal’ in any territory post-spring 2020.
“Therefore, the trademark applications that were filed as protective measures, acting on advice from and following the same model for The Royal Foundation, have been removed.”