Alongside the unfolding scandals from the House of York, the British press is predictably attacking the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. This has been happening since 2019, it’s not new to any of us tracking the Windsors and their moves for the past decade. What’s crazy is that, these days, there’s nothing new to say about Meghan and Harry from a royal perspective. They haven’t been in the royal fold for almost six years. Which explains all of the “remember when” pieces being churned out on a weekly basis. The royals and royalists continue to tell on themselves too. We’ve gone from “we welcomed Meghan with open arms” and “we gave her everything she needed to succeed” to.. we hated her on sight, we always treated her with suspicion, we made up childish nicknames about her and we wouldn’t even refer to her by her name or title.
An insider revealed the nickname Palace staffers had for Meghan Markle before she and Harry rescinded their royal duties. The moniker may seem innocent; however, it was a ‘not-so-subtle’ dig at the Duchess, likening her to the Duchess of Windsor, who is said to have triggered King Edward VIII’s abdication.
Meghan was dubbed ‘The American’ in reference to Wallis Simpson, the twice-divorced US socialite.
It wasn’t the only nickname Meghan earned during her stint as royalty. Prince Philip dubbed the 44-year-old ‘DOW’, short for Duchess of Windsor, also in reference to Simpson. She also copped some cruel nicknames online from ‘Me-gain’ to ‘Duchess Difficult’ and ‘MeMeMeghan’.
King Charles came up with the bizarre but favourable moniker ‘Tungsten’ for Meghan because she is ‘tough’ and ‘unbending’. Royal commentator Richard Kay revealed that a palace insider told him they and their colleagues coined the nickname not long after Meghan and Harry’s wedding.
‘We call her ‘The American’,’ one figure who worked for Queen Elizabeth told the editor, adding it was a ‘not-so-subtle nod’ to the Duchess of Windsor. Simpson is one of the most controversial royal figures in modern British history, as her relationship with King Edward VIII led to his abdication in 1936.
It’s sad that the frame of reference is so narrow that calling Meghan “the American” is meant to evoke Wallis Simpson. Like… is that their sole interaction with an American woman? Jesus. British people are never beating the “living like it’s still World War II” allegations. Anyway, the Mail says in this piece that “Duchess Difficult” and the other childish names were made online. This is false – just a few months after Meghan and Harry’s 2018 wedding, palace staff were openly bragging to Tatler and the tabloids about all of the ugly nicknames they had given Meghan. But they welcomed her with open arms, remember? Remember how they also made Meghan use a Rolls Royce once used by Wallis as well?
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Cover Images.
