ROYAL FAMILY NEWSQueen Camilla Insisted 'Divisive Threat' Meghan Markle 'Brainwashed' Prince Harry to Leave Royal Family in 2020, New Book Claims
Queen Camilla claimed Meghan Markle 'brainwashed' Prince Harry before their 2020 exit from the royal family.
March 14 2026, Published 11:05 a.m. ET
The royal family reportedly saw Meghan Markle as a "divisive threat" who "brainwashed" Prince Harry before their 2020 departure.
According to Tom Bower’s new book, Betrayal: Power, Deceit and the Fight for the Future of the Royal Family, the Duchess of Sussex, 44, changed the dynamic within The Firm upon her introduction into the family.
Meghan Markle Allegedly Influenced Prince Harry's Behavior
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry left the Firm in 2020.
"Meghan had become a divisive agent," Bower wrote via The Times. "To please her, Harry was ignoring his old friends. He even changed his telephone number without telling his family."
"The jovial lad about town became possessed by seeking revenge," he added. "Increasingly, his character mirrored Meghan's. Emotionally, he veered towards extremes. Simple dislikes became passionate hatred."
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex Moved to the U.S. in 2020
The royal family was weary about Meghan Markle when she married Prince Harry.
"'Meghan's brainwashed Harry,' [Queen] Camilla told a friend," Bower claimed, also noting that Prince William and Kate Middleton "lamented Harry's unlikely chances of one day being king, just as she regretted the possibility that she would never be the Queen."
The Invictus Games founder, 41, and the former actress married in 2018 in a grand ceremony at St. James Palace in Windsor Castle.
Royal life was rosy until January 2020 when the Sussexes made the decision to depart from the Windsor clan and step back as senior members — in a move dubbed as "Megexit."
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Meghan Markle and Prince Harry's Rep Bashed Tom Bower's New Book
Queen Camilla believed that Meghan Markle was not a good influence on the Duke of Sussex.
Meghan and Harry subsequently moved to Montecito, Calif., that same year. They opted to focus on their business pursuits, such as their Netflix documentaries, the Duchess' lifestyle brand, As Ever, and their philanthropic efforts.
The couple's spokesperson slammed Bower's book and accused him of spreading conspiracies about the royal pair.
“Mr. Bower’s commentary has long crossed the line from criticism into fixation,” their rep said in a statement.
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry's rep blasted Tom Bower's new biography.
“This is someone who has publicly stated, ‘the monarchy in fact depends on actually obliterating the Sussexes from our state of life,’ language that speaks for itself," they said.
They continued: “He has made a career out of constructing ever more elaborate theories about people he does not know and has never met. Those interested in facts will look elsewhere; those seeking deranged conspiracy and melodrama know exactly where to find him.”
Elsewhere in the biography, Bower alleged that Meghan influenced Harry's decisions, including their frequent appearances at public events and the legitimacy of Harry's Invictus Games.
