Meghan Markle defended by fans after holiday post with Lilibet and Archie

Royal observers have defended Meghan Markle amid backlash stemming from photos she shared of her family.

The Sussex family travelled to the UK and King Charles reunited with his grandchildren for the first time since 2022. Details of the meeting have been kept private.

The Duchess of Sussex shared an Instagram post about the family’s recent visit to the UK, captioning the collection, ‘Summer Holiday’. One of the images shows Prince Harry with his children walking along a grassy path with hedges and large trees.

Some royal commenters were reportedly livid following the release of the photos, as the photo taken of the grassy path is believed to have been taken at Althorp, the Spencer family’s estate.

A closer look appears to show Archie and Harry carrying bouquets, which royal commentators suggested meant that they visited Princess Diana’s burial site located on an island in the middle of her family’s estate.

Royal expert Richard Fitzwilliams suggested that the Spencer’s must have given the Duke and Duchess of Sussex permission to visit Althorp, along with Diana’s grandchildren, therefore her post is ‘permissible’, Fox News reports.

Another commentator criticised Meghan for sharing the family’s moment publicly. "As for Meghan posting photos of the children at Diana’s family home. It is a predictable move,” said Helena Chard. “It ties them to history without using a title. However, it also shows a slight tension, wanting the Royal story when it helps, while keeping distance when it doesn’t.”

Social media accounts dedicated to the royals also dissected the images, calling Meghan’s post showing Prince Harry and his children walking in Diana’s family estate ‘deeply disrespectful’.

“To me, staging your kids at Princess Diana’s gravesite for Instagram is pure clout-chasing,” an X (formerly Twitter) account raged. “I find it deeply disrespectful and opportunistic.”

However, royal observers and fans of the Duchess of Sussex have pointed out an odd flaw in the theory that Meghan exploited a family moment by sharing pictures of the Spencer family’s estate.

Charles Spencer’s wife, professor Cat Spencer shared a photo of her husband paying his respects a gravesite on the estate, accompanied with the headstone of Princess Diana’s brother. Spencer is the younger brother of Diana. However, these posts have not attracted any criticism.

The gravesite is dedicated to John Spencer, who died shortly after birth on 12 January, 1960. He would have been the elder brother of Diana, who was born on 1 July 1961.

The caption of the post reads: "He was buried in a quiet corner of the church of St Mary Magdalen, Sandringham, next to their grandfather. A few years ago, Charles had John’s headstone restored. The church is right next to Park House, where Charles and his siblings grew up. I loved seeing these parts of Norfolk where he had what sounds like a gloriously happy childhood!"

Fans compared the reactions directed at Meghan's post, to the new post featuring Charles Spencer. “It’s almost like the internet just got a free lesson on what posting a gravesite actually looks like,” one commenter wrote. “Isn’t it funny how reality has a habit of exposing manufactured outrage especially when it comes to Meghan Sussex. It was never about the gravesite after all because I haven’t seen any outrage or a single article about this actual posting!”

Another royal fan shared: “Here he is posting pictures of his brother's grave. John Spencer. An infant who died a year before Diana was born. So yeah. All those crying about Meghan posting pictures from Althorp, should take the message.”