While Prince Harry and Meghan Markle‘s love story is well known, they aren’t the only royal couple who have given Disney a run for its money when it comes to dream-come-true romances!
News broke of Harry and Meghan’s romance in 2016 after the pair were introduced through mutual friends. The following year, the royal and the actress announced that they were engaged in their first joint interview.
“It was just an amazing surprise,” the Suits alum gushed to BBC News about the proposal at Kensington Palace’s Nottingham Cottage. “It was just so sweet and natural and very romantic. He got on one knee. As a matter of fact, I could barely let [him] finish proposing. I was like, ‘Can I say ‘yes’ now?’”
In May 2018, the duo tied the knot at St George’s Chapel in Windsor, England, and they were granted the Duke and Duchess of Sussex title by Queen Elizabeth II at the time. They welcomed their son, Archie, in May 2019.
One year later, the pair announced that they were stepping back from their duties as working members of the royal family. Harry and Meghan chose to move from the U.K. to California and in February 2021, it was confirmed that they would not be returning to their senior roles at the palace.
In March 2021, the twosome opened up about their decision to no longer be part of the royal family during a tell-all interview on CBS.
“I was trapped but I didn’t know I was trapped,” Harry shared. “Trapped within the system like the rest of the family. My father [Prince Charles] and my brother are trapped. They don’t get to leave and I have huge compassion for that.”
During the interview, the California native revealed that she attempted to seek help for suicidal thoughts after struggling with the targeted negative press in the U.K.
“Look, I was really ashamed to have to say it at the time and ashamed to have to admit it to Harry especially, but I knew that if I didn’t say that I would do it,” she explained at the time. “I just didn’t want to be alive anymore.”
As Harry and Meghan adjusted to their new life, the Duke of Sussex reflected on his outlook on being a royal.
“It’s the job, right? Grin and bear it. Get on with it. I was in my early 20s and I was thinking, ‘I don’t want this job, I don’t want to be here. I don’t want to be doing this,’” Harry said during an episode of the “Armchair Expert” podcast in May 2021. “Look what it did to my mum. How am I ever going to settle down and have a wife and family, when I know it’s going to happen again?”
Since their departure, Harry detailed how living in Santa Barbara allows them to walk “a little more free.” One month later, the Sussexes welcomed their daughter, Lilibet.
Scroll down to see all of the royals who married commoners: