Meghan Markle is now officially Her Royal Highness Princess Henry of Wales, the Duchess of Sussex – and with that great title comes great responsibility. Here are 12 things Meghan can no longer do now that she’s a royal.
1. Take selfies
Celebrities – and people in general – love selfies. But selfies have become a thing of Meghan’s past now that she’s a member of the royal family.
According to Matthew Barzun, former U.S. ambassador to the United Kingdom, the no-selfie rule is due to the fact that Queen Elizabeth just doesn’t like them:
Her Majesty told Matthew Barzun, the US ambassador, that she finds it “strange” to see nothing but the backs of mobile phones whenever she looks up.
“She was essentially saying: ‘I miss eye contact,’ ” Mr Barzun told Tatler magazine.
And while it might seem like this would be a hard habit to break for Meghan, she’s already gotten the hang of it, reportedly telling a couple at her first official event with Harry that they’re “not allowed to do selfies.”
Meghan is learning the royal ropes already, telling one couple who asked for a selfie in Nottingham today: “We’re not allowed to do selfies.”
— Victoria Murphy (@byQueenVic) December 1, 2017
2. Use social media
Speaking of selfies, even if Meghan were allowed to take them, she wouldn’t be allowed to post them on social media. Prior to meeting Harry, Meghan was very active on social media and even ran a blog – but all her accounts have since been deleted. Instead, she has joined Harry, Kate, and Will under @KensingtonRoyal on social media, which is “the official account of The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, The Duke and Duchess of Sussex and their Royal Foundation.”
3. Go out in public/travel alone
This is certainly a given. Meghan is already used to having a relatively high profile as an actress, but now that she’s a royal, it’s unfortunately unsafe for her to appear in public or travel alone. She was issued royal protection officers following her engagement to Harry, and will continue to rely on heightened security to keep her safe during public outings and royal tours.
4. Give autographs
Except for official signings at royal engagements, members of the royal family are not allowed to sign autographs for the public. This rule is in place to prevent anyone from forging a signature and using it against the royal family. And while Meghan likely signed her autograph for fans as an actress, she’s already mastered this rule, too: during an official visit to Cardiff, Wales, she wrote “Hi Kaitlin” in the autograph book of a fan instead of signing her name.
Meghan Markle writes a message to 10 year old Caitlin Clarke as Prince Harry and his fiancé visit Cardiff Castle @GettyImages pic.twitter.com/Bc9UoFgvK6
— Chris Jackson (@ChrisJack_Getty) January 18, 2018
5. Vote
As an American, Meghan probably doesn’t take the right to vote lightly; but as a royal, she will not be permitted to participate in any UK elections after being granted British citizenship. According to the official parliament website, “it is considered unconstitutional for the Monarch to vote in an election.” The law is murkier as pertaining to the rest of the royal family, but they are nevertheless expected to remain neutral.
6. Go to bed before Queen Elizabeth
This isn’t so much a hard-and-fast rule as it is just polite protocol, but it’s a formality that Harry’s late mother, Princess Diana, reportedly hated to follow. As the Queen’s former private secretary, Sir William Heseltine, told author Juliet Rieden:
“There’d be an hour or so in the sitting room of everyone sitting around making conversation, and nobody felt it right to go to bed before the Queen did.” Eventually, Diana got so sick of the pomp and circumstance that she’d excuse herself and go to bed anyway, despite it being considered “rather bad form.”
Apparently, the party isn’t over until the Queen says it is.
7. Open presents on Christmas Day
While most families in both the U.S. and UK traditionally open presents on Christmas morning, the royal family holds a different tradition. Every year, the royal family celebrates Christmas at Sandringham House at the invitation of Queen Elizabeth. Presents are opened on Christmas Eve, followed by church on Christmas morning.
8. Play Monopoly
Hopefully Meghan isn’t a fan of this classic board game, because Queen Elizabeth reportedly forbids it. The Telegraph reported in 2008 that when Prince Andrew was presented with the game during a lunch for the Leeds Building Society, he remarked, “We’re not allowed to play Monopoly at home. It gets too vicious.” Honestly, that’s probably a good call on the Queen’s part.
9. Step out with bare legs
Members of the royal family are expected to present themselves a certain way, and one of the rules is reportedly no bare legs. According to royal expert Victoria Arbiter, “You never see a royal without their nude stockings.” She added, “I would say that’s really the only hard, steadfast rule in terms of what the Queen requires.” Indeed, Meghan caused a bit of a scandal when she neglected to wear stockings during the announcement of her engagement to Prince Harry. But she always makes sure to wear them now.
10. Wear wedges
In 2015, a source told Vanity Fair, “The Queen isn’t a fan of wedged shoes. She really doesn’t like them and it’s well known among the women in the family.” However, the no-wedges rule apparently only applies when the Queen is present, as Kate has sported them on official outings.
11. Wear bright or dark colored nail polish
Another seemingly random rule Meghan will have to follow is no dark or brightly colored nail polish at official events – neutral/natural colors only. But here’s a cool fact: according to nail polish company Essie, Queen Elizabeth has been wearing the color “Ballet Slippers,” a very subtle light shade of pink, since 1989.
12. Sit with her legs crossed
While this isn’t an official rule, it’s often frowned upon when royal women cross their legs. Instead, it’s preferred they sit with either their knees or ankles together, legs slanted to one side. This way of sitting has come to be called the “Duchess Slant,” after Kate.
Those are certainly a lot of rules to follow – and there are undoubtedly many more that we don’t know about. But, given that she’s a full-on duchess now, Meghan probably doesn’t mind.
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