Former royal couple Meghan Markle and Prince Harry are in a new docuseries on Netflix. In it, they open up about their experiences in the royal family and what it is like to have renounced their titles. Viewers will get a first-hand account of their relationship, wedding, and life today. 

Their First Date

Meghan first caught Prince Harry's eye online on Instagram when he saw a picture of her on a mutual friend's post, using a Snapchat filter of a dog's face and ears. When he asked about the photo, their mutual friend set them up on a date. 

On their first date, Meghan says Prince Harry was 30 minutes late. She started to think the relationship wasn't going to work out, but when he showed up, he was able to win her over quickly. He admitted to being incredibly nervous and sitting in his car, working up the courage to meet with her. The couple quickly hit it off, and the royal family announced their relationship in November 2016.

The Engagement

Prince Harry shared that he wanted to propose sooner than he did in November 2017, but he had to get permission from his grandmother, Queen Elizabeth. On the night of the proposal, he gave himself away by popping a bottle of champagne before dinner was ready. Because they only had champagne on special occasions, Meghan suspected that he might propose.

Meghan is only the second American to marry into the British royal family. In addition, she was the first person of mixed race to become a royal. She was baptized into the Church of England and applied for British citizenship while retaining her American citizenship. 

Breaking of Traditions

While royal weddings are full of tradition, Meghan and Harry did several things that were different from the norm. The wedding occurred on May 18, 2018, at St. George's Chapel. While traditionally royal weddings are held on weekdays, the wedding took place on a Saturday. In addition, despite Meghan's previous divorce, she was permitted to marry in the Anglican Church.

It is tradition for the bride's father to walk her down the aisle. Unfortunately, Meghan's father suffered a heart attack before the wedding and was unable to travel. She walked down the aisle with her bridesmaids and pageboys, all children. Once she entered the chapel, Prince Harry's father took over and walked her the rest of the way.

Because Meghan is half African American, the wedding included the first African American bishop of an Episcopal Church. He spoke of the importance of love between the two cultures, which many saw as a significant moment for African American culture.

In addition, they altered the wedding vows to take a more feminist view and exchanged their first kiss in front of the church instead of on the balcony, and Prince Harry chose to wear a wedding ring. All of these differ from long-held royal wedding traditions. 

Megxit

In 2020, Meghan and Prince Harry decided to leave the royal family. In a decision the media dubbed as "Megxit," they decided to no longer hold their titles as Duke and Duchess and wanted to spend their time living in both the United Kingdom and North America. This became official in February 2021, when they renounced their titles and no longer received financial support from the royal family.

Motivations behind the break from the royal family stemmed from poor treatment by the media, particularly toward Meghan. The couple felt that the royal family did not support or defend them against untrue and racist statements.

Harry and Meghan's relationship has been untraditional in the eyes of the royal family, and unprecedented with their exit from the royal family. However, their wedding had significant influence on African American culture and royal tradition.