Queen Elizabeth II asked Meghan Markle what she thought of former US President Donald Trump during their very first meeting, Prince Harry has revealed. The late Queen showed her inquisitive side while meeting the former Suits actress for the first time at the Royal Lodge near Windsor Castle in 2016 – just before Trump’s election triumph.
It may have been a nerve-wracking moment for the Duchess of Sussex, having just started dating Harry and more recently – on the car journey over – learned she had to curtsey.
Meghan, 41, performed a “flawless” curtsey, Harry recalls, also noting Princess Eugenie, her future husband Jack Brooksbank and Prince Andrew were present.
The monarch, who died aged 96 in September, then showed an interest in Meghan’s trip to the UK.
In his memoir Spare, set to be released tomorrow, the Duke of Sussex, 38, recalls: “It was all very pleasant. Granny even asked Meg what she thought of Donald Trump. (This was just before the November 2016 election, so everyone in the world seemed to be thinking and talking about the Republican candidate).
“Meg thought politics a no-win game, so she changed the subject to Canada.”
The Duchess explained how she had lived in Canada for seven years, which went down well with the late monarch as a Commonwealth nation, Harry recalls.
Meghan lived in Toronto for the period while filming hit legal drama Suits, in which she played attorney Rachel Zane.
The late Queen departed after 20 minutes, accompanied by the Duke of York who had been holding her bag.
Her Majesty waved back at her Harry, Eugenie, Jack and Meghan as she left, making eye contact with the Duchess of Sussex, Harry writes in his autobiography.
Queen Elizabeth would meet Donald Trump for the first time in 2019 at Buckingham Palace, making him the 13th President – and second to last before Joe Biden – to shake hands with the monarch.
Meghan has never publicly voiced her opinion of Trump, but Trump has been less than flattering about the Duchess, declaring himself “not a fan” and Harry as “whipped”.
Meghan has also described this first meeting – and how she learned how to curtsey in front of the house before entering to ensure her posture was correct.
“And I remember we were in the car driving up and he’s like, ‘You know how to curtsey, right?’ And I just thought it was a joke.”
Also speaking on the series, Harry added: “How do you explain that to people? How do you explain that you bow to your grandmother? And that you will need to curtsey. Especially to an American. That’s weird.”
