Prince Harry has ‘fully repaid’ the $3.1 million spent on Frogmore Cottage’s renovation

Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, pose with their newborn son

I hate the feeling of “owing” money to anyone. In my life, I’ve barely ever borrowed money from anyone besides a bank. And the relief I felt when I paid off my car! I just hate the feeling. In the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s case, it wasn’t even that they really *owed* anyone anything. Frogmore Cottage was “given” to them as a “gift” by the Queen. Frogmore is part of the Windsor Castle complex, which is part of the Crown Estates, meaning it’s not really private property owned by the Queen.

When the Queen gave the H&M Frogmore Cottage, it was known that the cottage was a bit dilapidated and that renovations would need to take place, much like the Cambridges taking over Kensington Palace’s Apartment 1, which also needed a big reno. Most of the updating on the cottage was structural, but the tabloids made it sound like this little cottage was some kind of gold-plated castle and Meghan was personally billing British taxpayers for her diamond-encrusted toilet. So when H&M were negotiating their Sussexit, they promised that they would “pay back” the costs of the Frogmore renovations. As far as I know, they volunteered to pay it back, yet the “when will they pay it baaaaack” cries have been heard for months now. Because how dare Meghan have a toilet and a bed and a roof which does not leak! Anyway, the Sussexes paid that sh-t back.

When the Sussexes announced plans to step back as working members of the royal family earlier this year, the couple made it clear that they also wanted complete financial independence from The Firm. And now, just five months since their March 31 departure, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have achieved exactly that after Prince Harry fully repaid the £2.4 million ($3.1 million) spent converting Frogmore Cottage into a family home. A representative for the couple tells BAZAAR.com, “This contribution, as originally offered by Prince Harry, has fully covered the necessary renovation costs of Frogmore Cottage, a property of Her Majesty The Queen, and will remain the U.K. residence of The Duke and his family.”

Buckingham Palace also confirm that the amount was recently repaid in full to the Sovereign Grant, the British government and tax-payer supported purse that funds the royal family and their professional endeavors.

“There was never any expectation or request from the Royal Family or the Crown Estate to repay this but they have felt it was important to do so and this is why they proactively offered to repay as soon as the move was announced,” a source close to the couple tells BAZAAR.com. While installments may have been an option, the duke, adds the source, was eager to repay the money in full. The £2.4 million costs spent in 2018 covered the structural renovations needed to turn Windsor Estate’s Grade II-listed Frogmore Cottage back into a liveable family home, after it had previously been converted into staff apartments several decades ago. All interior refurbishments, including appliances and decorative elements, were already privately covered by the couple.

Prince Harry’s repayment means that the Sussexes now have full financial independence. Despite offers from Prince Charles to provide financial support from his Duchy of Cornwall estate, a separate source close to the couple tells BAZAAR.com that they are “not taking anything” from the Prince of Wales. “They want to be completely independent.”

[From Harper’s Bazaar]

Yep. I hate that they even had to do this though. I hate that the Queen didn’t just come out and say “the cottage and the renovation were given as gifts.” I imagine there would still be tantrums from the assortment of racists and dumbasses, but at least someone would have underlined the f–king point that this was meant as a gift, just as Anmer Hall was a gift to the Cambridges, just as Kensington Palace Apt. 1 was a gift to the Cambridges, just as the Royal Lodge was a gift to Prince Andrew, and on and on. I also enjoy the fact that Harry was like “Frogmore is still our place in England, even if we’re barely going to be there.” That, as the kids say, is a flex.

The “shifting goalposts” thing is already happening too. Now those same salty douchebros are “demanding” that Harry & Meghan give up more sh-t, like their titles. Ugh.

archie2

Photos courtesy of Backgrid.

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125 Responses to “Prince Harry has ‘fully repaid’ the $3.1 million spent on Frogmore Cottage’s renovation”

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  1. Sarah says:

    “All interior refurbishments, including appliances and decorative elements, were already privately covered by the couple.”

    Yeah this leaves such a bitter taste in my mouth. The needed somewhere to live, (accidentally typed that as ‘love’, also true but not my point), they don’t own this building, just have use of it and it needed structural work to maintain it and turn it back into one home. How do they owe anyone ANYTHING??? I’m preaching to the converted here but it really frustrates me how terribly they’ve been treated. Even more so in contrast to what other members of their family get up to.

    Burn the institution down.

    • Bettyrose says:

      This one really gets me too. They don’t own Frogmore Cottage in the sense of being able to sell it, so that $3 million is a gift the Crown Estates, not an investment for H & M.

      • BayTampaBay says:

        Not only do the Sussexes not own Frogmore Cottage but they cannot rent it out nor can they loan it to friends to stay in when they are not present in residence.

        There is no way I would have paid one USA Lincoln headed cent on the structural renovations to a property I do not own, have a long term private lease, did not have complete right of occupancy on and/or was on a schedule for renovation prior to being gifted to me.

      • RoyalBlue says:

        me neither. i was not paying for any external structural repairs and my lawyer would be speaking to them about that. my guess is that this was all handled privately where it was paid for silently without fanfare. we do not know the source of the funds that was used to repay this amount so we can only speculate.

      • TeamAwesome says:

        Any chance that it can be counted as a tax write off?

      • bettyrose says:

        Absolutely no idea about the tax write off. Maybe they can feel proud that they contributed to the conservation of British history. Long after the RF is abolished, those buildings will be tourist sites, creating jobs and bringing in public revenue. That’s all I got.

    • Nic919 says:

      Normally landlords are obligated to cover the costs of structural changes in a building. If they already covered interior furnishings themselves, they shouldn’t have had to paid for this. And it’s especially gross when you know that KP was renovated in some rooms twice at no cost to the Cambridges at a time when they were not working full time. Or at least they retro actively claimed they were just part time back then. But double standards abound…

  2. Edna says:

    I understand why they repaid the money but it’s wrong that they did so. Doubtful if any other royals will be hounded to repay money that they don’t technically owe. And the goalposts keep moving. The BM and RRs are on to the next thing to harass H&M about.

    • Harper says:

      Harry now has that F-you money that brings absolute freedom and peace. My, how quickly the British media forgot that precious boy who had to walk behind his mother’s coffin and pledged to lay off him and his brother so they would have a better life than their mother.

      • Hello says:

        Yes to everything you said

      • bluemoonhorse says:

        Exactly. This gives peace of mind, continues to show there is a line in the sand, and that Harry is done.

      • Tealie says:

        I guess you’re right the whole reason they wanted them to pay it back was because they thought they were poor and it would run them to the ground I know it hurts but he not only paid 2.4 million out right in under three months of saying he would but also purchased a $14 million house whilst also paying rent (Frogmore) and a mortgage (Montecito).

    • Mumbles says:

      I would imagine a UK taxpayer whose taxes paid for the initial renovations would disagree. Not necessarily paid by the Sussexes themselves, but every member of that incredibly rich family should be paying for their own home renovations. Anmer Hall, Kensington Palace, Frogmore Cottage – none should be renovated on the public dime.

      • BnLurkN4eva says:

        The British tax payer will never see a dime of that money. It will go right back to the queen to do with what she choose. The argument works if the British tax payers say enough to all of it and get rid of the monarchy, anything else is just being spiteful to H/M because Meghan is not white.

      • notasugarhere says:

        Kensington Palace and Frogmore Cottage are taxpayer property, therefore taxpayer money is used for the upkeep. That is logical, nothing wrong there, roofs must be fixed, wiring must be updated.

        Anmer Hall is private property. We’re told the renovations there were not paid by taxpayers, but if Charles paid via the Duchy? Then yes, every penny should be repaid to the Duchy.

      • Nic919 says:

        The second KP kitchen reno because Kate had picked a different colour scheme was never fully addressed. Since Kate has no money of her own and William always claims poverty, who paid for that? Harry has cleared his books on that score but the Cambridges have skated by on so much.

      • FicklePickle says:

        The Frogmore renovations were paid for with money from the Sovereign Grant, which is funded exclusively by the revenues of the Crown Estate (fancy words for a government-owned real estate investment portfolio). It is public money, but not taxpayer money.

        Taxpayer money never goes anywhere near the BRF’s expenses except for security, and when those go beyond a certain minimum amount per year the London police department gets reimbursed by the Sovereign Grant. I think it’s a million pounds sterling?

      • Humbugged says:

        FicklePickle

        Right on both things .

        Crown Estates were taken into the HMG in the beggining of the 19th century and the deal is that HMG gets the big cut and the Crown gets a cut of the money (usually 15-25 % of the profit on the £14 billion holdings ) to pay for refurbs on the Sovereign Grant

        Security – When the next thing about money for the wedding comes up (as it surely will) just point out that Thames Valley police did ineed apply for the rebate for H & M wedding that came to £2.5 million and no what near the £30 million that the press still try to claim it did

      • A says:

        Then why doesn’t the British press hound every other member of the UK royal family to pay back every last penny they own then? Why only the Sussexes? Why don’t their readers or the British public push for better accountability and transparency in their finances as a whole? The only story we ever get is about how the Sussexes owe the tax payers, with maybe a quip here and there about how the Queen is a grifter with a golden piano. But nothing so substantial as what we’ve seen with the Sussexes. It’s almost as if the tabloids are fundamentally disingenuous with their argument in this respect.

      • notasugarhere says:

        I consider Sovereign Grant and Crown Estate to be taxpayer property. When the monarchy is thrown out, the Windsors don’t get to keep those properties.

    • Myra says:

      That’s the thing with racism, the goalpost would always keep moving because one half of this couple is not white. A new standard to royalty was introduced ever since Meghan joined that family in 2018. In the eyes of the racists, whatever she does is never good enough, never royal, never classy. That same standard is now being applied to Harry because he dared to love her so publicly and put her above everything and anyone else.

  3. Boxy Lady says:

    I was on DM yesterday and saw that commenters were complaining about the titles. I commented that Prince Andrew would need to lose his title first. Of course, DM wouldn’t publish it. 🙄

    • mytwocents says:

      yes, they are now claiming their titles need to go, they now need to repay the wedding costs back.. when does this all end?

      • Belle says:

        They should give up their titles, they don’t want it and the Crown does not want HER. But it doesn’t matter what they do, the haters will hold that whatever they have achieved will be a direct result of their association with the royal family, so no it will never end. They should just do it for their own sanity and press forward on their own with ZERO association to them and perhaps soon we can start focusing on their new projects, their effects and not on what the daily mail is reporting. Old news and tiresome. We know the British media does not like her, him, what else can we report! As I have said on another story, we need to give H&M space to do new things, things of value, we need a balance BUT they need time.

      • Jen says:

        They should definitely repay the wedding costs…. as soon as they get a check for the boost it provided in tourism.

      • Lemons says:

        Keep the titles, keep the wedding. Make these racists mad that a biracial(black) woman and her biracial son are British royalty and these salty courtiers, rota writers and DM commentators could NEVER amount to anything close to what Meghan has ever done in her life.

        It’s not about money or titles. It never was.

  4. Belli says:

    Place your bets. The list of things that they can “legitimately” be criticised for (heavy sarcasm) is dwindling fast. What will the next drum to beat endlessly be?

    I’m guessing it’ll be titles forever now, since they actually can’t give those back so there’s no chance of that excuse to write abusive articles collapsing.

    • STRIPE says:

      Yep. If it’s not one thing it’s another.

      I didn’t know they couldn’t give up their titles. Can you elaborate on that?

      Frankly if I were them (If I could) I absolutely would give them up to be totally free of the RF

      • Sofia says:

        Thing is, even if they give them up, they never will be “free” in both the eyes of the rota and the royal family. Harry and Archie will still have their positions in the line of succession. Harry will still remain “Prince Henry of Wales”. People will just move the goalposts and ask for wedding/tour costs to be refunded. I personally don’t care whether or not they “give up” their titles but the idea of “they’ll be free and people will leave them alone” when they do is… just not true. We’re even seeing it now when Frogmore’s been repaid and people still aren’t shutting up

      • Belli says:

        This is how I understand it so someone might step in with better info, but the Duke and Duchess titles can only be revoked via an act of parliament under a law that could remove titles from enemies to the crown (as much as Piers Morgan etc might like to claim they’re enemies to the crown, that’s clearly not the case). Even if that happened Harry’s title would revert back to Prince, which can’t be removed at all because it’s the status of his birth.

        So even on the outside chance that they no longer had the titles of Duke and Duchess through complicated means, they would be Prince and Princess which, even though they rank lower, I suspect the people calling for their titles to be removed would think that was worse.

      • BayTampaBay says:

        The Duke and Duchess of Sussex could request that the title go into “abeyance” which means the title would be put on ice and not used by Harry & Meghan but “in trust” for Archie.

        This has happened in Scotland with the Earl/Countess title which could not be held by a woman but could “pass-through” a woman. The title was placed in “abeyance” until there was a legitimate heir. “Abeyance” is also used when their is a legal dispute in a court to determine who the actual heir to a title really is. This has happened more times than one may think it has.

      • SilentStar says:

        Even if the titles can’t be taken away, perhaps they can preemptively abdicate?

        I find all this title business and RF “obligations” nonsense to be so bizarre — it’s all just a social construct! It only means something because enough people decided it means something.

        Seriously, if Harry gave a giant middle finger to all of it, what could they do? Could they sue him? If they could I just don’t see that happening.

        Since Harry is far enough down the line for it to be mostly just a symbolic title, perhaps he can just go ahead and live his life as though he had no title (which is what I think he is trying to do). The RF and all their hangers on can just keep on fussing about this “title” nonsense until they are blue in the face while the rest of us chuckle at their sad and desperate obsession to preserve an irrelevant institution that only exists in their own minds, while Megan and Harry rightly move forward into the 21st century.

      • Tealie says:

        .@ SilentStar He is far down the line of succession however he is at the top of the lead in their minds as the second most popular Royal and the person even Diana said should be king.

    • whateveryousay says:

      Yup now it’s the titles and that Harry should give up doing Invictus and other stuff. I loathe these people.

      • Edna says:

        Why should Harry give up Invictus or any other organization that he started? That’s so ridiculous. The Royal Family has nothing to do with Invictus or Sentabele…those are Harry’s just as the Prince’s Trust is Prince Charle’s organization.

      • whateveryousay says:

        Agree Edna. At this point they are just trying to make him miserable. All this because he dared to marry a black woman who didn’t know her place. /S

    • notasugarhere says:

      Or they’ll start screaming about how dare they keep that place empty X months a year when there are homeless in the UK.

      • BnLurkN4eva says:

        Then sane people would need to step in and remind the insane of all the empty castles in the land of England under the care of the queen.

      • 809Matriarch says:

        There are already wolves baying that one of the York girls should get the cottage since H&M are in the US now. Can you imagine the nerve? H&M paid for all the interior AND GAVE the Queen/Sovereign Grant money for the renovations it already needed and expect them to just step aside so the whole kit and kaboodle can be a GIFT to the Yorks?
        If I were Harry I would demand the Yorks pay ME for what I put into that property first.

      • notasugarhere says:

        Those must be the new fake Beatrice stans. Kate fans hated Beatrice for years, because they refused to believe the fact of Kate bullying Beatrice. Now they have chosen to champion Beatrice, of the shady relationship started while Edo was living with his baby mama. Why? Because it is one more way to hate on Meghan.

  5. MissM says:

    Now the idiots on the daily fail can sleep better knowing the money will show up in their personal bank accounts 🙄.

    They are now saying “when will they pay us back for the wedding?”. As the kids say, stay salty.

    • Rita says:

      Tell them to collect the money through the tourist that attended and the money they made off the wedding.

      • cc says:

        and then Cut a cheque for Harry and Meghan.

      • bamaborn says:

        THIS!! Over 1 billion added to the coffers of that little sliver of land in the channel. Come on Brexit, work your magic!

      • Tealie says:

        Exactly, it was the most popular royal wedding that has been watched EVER with the most viewers with it’s under a third of the worlds population one 1.9 billion viewers tuning in, compare to Kate and Williams global estimate of 162 million i ,think it’s gone it even more views internationally than Diana‘s

    • fluffy_bunny says:

      Only if M&H get the money for all of the merchandise they pimped out for their wedding. I have a ceramic box with their logo and 2 tins of wedding tea.

    • BayTampaBay says:

      The Daily Fail is saying that the Netflix deal, like Meghan’s pregnancy, is a sham and lie and that Prince Charles actually paid back refurbishment cost on Frogmore cottage with his personal funds. The DM commentariat are a bunch of nut-case loonies.

      • MsIam says:

        The Daily Fail is saying this or the loonies in the comments? Seeing as Netflix itself issued a statement about the deal, it seems like even the loonies would have a hard time believing that.

    • Dalloway says:

      People forget that they already did this. H&M paid for the wedding via BBC broadcasting rights and donated the profit of £90k to coronavirus relief.

    • notasugarhere says:

      The wedding was paid for privately, the proven 2-3 million in security was paid by taxpayers. Are the baying idiots demanding repayment for security for Zara’s wedding? Peter’s? Lady Helen Windsor’s?

  6. Jane Doe says:

    I think a large part of the outrage towards these two is about how they inadvertently demonstrate the complete irrelevance of the monarchy. Good for them.
    And the moving goalposts everyone is mentioning? So right, nothing will satisfy the haters.

    • TeamAwesome says:

      The only way people stop being interested in Harry is if time travelers go back and erase him from the timeline.

    • Ginger says:

      Agreed. The point of the royal rota is to sell how wonderful and amazing the RF is. That is their job. When you have the most popular and loved blood prince willingly walk away and be successful and happy, you have to wonder what is the point of a RF at all? They have no idea what to do with that.

  7. vivi says:

    from owing money to the UK taxpayer and his family to being Netflix’s bishes … easy LMAO

  8. Eleonor says:

    AH! .
    This made me laugh. Can you imagine the purse of lips and pearl cruch? Where did they get the money? WORK.
    OH the end of the monarchy!!!!

    • Sarah says:

      The irony has just struck me that the DM/Sun/etc. who so desperately control and need the monarchy for clicks and revenue are inadvertently doing nothing but draw attention to the fact that the BRF have massive wealth that they don’t work for and still cost the nation millions of pounds.

      While we have a lady who lost her job due to lockdown, couldn’t claim any benefits due to her immigration status and was found dead in her home with her toddler (still alive) next to her because she couldn’t afford food. Oh and it took a footballer to draw attention to (and change) the fact that children who get free school meals during term time would be going hungry over the summer because the vouchers given to parents while schools were shut would stop when the holiday officially started.

      I feel for all of you in the US, I really do. You have big problems. I also cry for the state of Britain. Our country is also run by people who are only out to make themselves and their privileged friends richer, they’re just mildly more subtle about it.

      • NatureLover says:

        @ Sarah, how tragic! OMG! When I just read your comment I was utterly heartbroken and utterly gutted that a woman dies in the presence of her toddler that went unnoticed for 2 DAYS is unfathomable!! My heart breaks for her and her family! Why and HOW could this happen? And the fact that a footballer had to come out and condemn this atrocity for any form of attention? I am heartbroken.

  9. Palmasan says:

    So how will the UK tabloids will turn this against the Sussexes, I wonder? They were demanding the debt be cleared and now it is, what can they accuse them of? And if they demand their titles, will it eventually lead to an anti-monarchy debate in the Parliament?
    I also wonder about the agenda behind all these campaigns at this point. Aside of bait-clicking, could it be their go-to topic to distract the public of more pressing issues like the mismanagement of the pandemic, the crisis in the NHS and especially the upcoming Brexit? Because Boris was already threatening the EU yesterday about not honouring their pre-arrangement…
    The next month will be interesting.

  10. Sofia says:

    Oh good! Has every taxpaying Brit received a personal notification from their bank saying they’ve got a refund from Harry and Meghan because that was exactly what was going to happen when the Sussexes announced they would pay back Frogmore! (sarcasm)

    No of course not.

  11. Snuffles says:

    Their next list of demands will be:

    1) Strip them of their titles

    2) Take away their patronages

    3) Harry must remove himself from the line of succession

    4) Harry must give up his U.K. citizenship

    5) Ban Meghan and Harry from ever stepping foot in the U.K. again

    The papers will do all of the above while simultaneously begging Harry to come back to save the Monarchy and England from Brexit backlash and Scottish Independence. He will be blamed for everything going wrong in the U.K. for the next decade because he was present to stop all the bad things happening that have nothing to do with him.

    • PEARL GREY says:

      Add to the list:

      •Repay the wedding costs, including compensation for any tights and hemline-related emotional distress caused to the future future Queen consort

      •Repay the royal tour costs

      •Repay Meghan’s “miLLiOn dOllAr wArDrObE”, including items she owned already

      •Pay a fine for every breach of protocol, including the time Meghan wore a ring on her thumb

      •Repay the security costs

      •Give up Frogmore Cottage to Princess Eugenie and her husband

      •Repay the costs for every hot shower they took from Summer 2017 to March 2020

      •Give up their positions as President and Vice President of the Queen’s Commonwealth Trust

      •Give back the ‘gag gifts‘ they were given by the royal family at Christmas

      •Repay the costs for the roast chicken and any side dishes Meghan was making when Harry proposed

      •Strip Harry of his ‘Prince’ title and change his, Meghan and Archie’s last name to Ragland

      • Bella DuPont says:

        LMAO……..how funny and ludicrous. And also accurate.

        Oh, and you forgot to add Archie to the list. They want Archie stripped from them as well.

      • Belle says:

        Agree, I am reading all of these bullet points and I am like wait… this is EXACTLY what could and will happen…. because I have seen the comments on the other websites, these things are already being demanded by commenters. It’s only a matter of time before it becomes a headline or survey of British people says…

      • lanne says:

        Is anyone else grossed out by how much the loonies are begging for Harry and Meghan to be “stripped”? Like they want them paraded nekkid through the streets or something? Some of the tabloid talk against Meghan particularly has bordered on sexual harrassment (how sexual the rota reporters find her, the exotic DNA). The royal rota want them body and soul, and it’s absolutely disgusting.

    • bluemoonhorse says:

      While I agree here, the point is Harry agreed to repay the Frogmore costs in order to be free. He repaid them and kept his word in 5 months. Will the British press ever be happy? No. Will they ever be fair? No. But Harry kept his word and I’m sure that is all that matters to him.

      • NatureLover says:

        @ bluemoonhorsem, I agree with you wholeheartedly!
        I would like to point out that the renovations for Frogmore had already been approved for renovations before it was a gift from TQ! The fact that the RR and every other slime ball reporter stirring up all of this hatred and controversy are all just angry that H&M refused to not play ball and as their ongoing campaign of hatred towards these two will never stop. They are like dogs with a bone that refuse to give up their hatred campaign and are angry that they no longer have the ability to have the BP of Limp Willy slipping them they juicy details. What a bunch of dreadful people that even crossing the pond, these monsters refuse to let them go.

    • ennie says:

      Where is all that energy vs Randy Andy? Shameful.

  12. aquarius64 says:

    The titles aren’t going to go. By letters patent the Duke of Sussex title is hereditary; Archie becomes the 3rd Duke at Harry’s passing. Harry may want to hold onto the title if Archie wants it. Stay mad BM. It’s your fault you’re getting sloppy seconds regarding Harry and Meghan news from the US press. If you were fair in your treatment you would have had the scoops. Now Omid Scobie is the official go to for a royal reporter for US media for all things Sussex and you’re out in the cold.

    • Sofia says:

      “Archie becomes the 3rd Duke at Harry’s passing.” Not quite. While yes Archie will be the 3rd Duke of Sussex ever in history, the numbers may not be used. They’re only used when the person who’s holding the dukedom doesn’t have a HRH. Now as the current laws stand, Archie will be “upgraded” to a HRH when Charles becomes King but his parents will most likely hold off calling him HRH until he’s 18 and he can chose if he wants to be HRH Prince Archie or just stay Archie Mountbatten-Windsor. But even if he rejects the HRH, he’ll still legally be HRH unless the laws change.

  13. morrigan01 says:

    Harry is playing chess, okay? He’s playing chess. The Royal Family, The Courtiers and the Royal Reporters are all playing checkers, and Harry is out here playing chess.

    Are the next thing they ask for going to be taking his and Meghan’s titles away? Is that the next thing? Because think *real hard* if you think that’ll accomplish anything haters. Harry isn’t going to fight about it. He won’t care at all if it’s taken. Meghan has *been* done about all that. Archie already doesn’t have a title. Netflix didn’t sign them because of their titles, no matter what some of these people keep telling themselves. Harry and Meghan are now a global brand unto themselves, independent of any Royal titles they may or may not have. And besides that, people will always *think* of Harry as a Prince whether he officially carries that title or not if it ever goes so far as wanting to strip him of his blood-born Prince title, never mind the Dukedom.

    So yeah, I hope they keep playing checkers and move onto the titles. Because knowing Harry and all his and Meghan’s chess moves, they’ve already thought ahead about the possibility of it happening anyway. And will just let ya’ll set that precedent of taking titles away from blood royals. And I’m sure Andrew’s name won’t be brought up at all by anyone down the road after you do so.

    • whateveryousay says:

      Good points. I think that the RR thinks if he loses his title that means less interest. They apparently don’t realize they are setting them up for a “Prince Who Was Pushed Out Due to Racism and Love” storyline at all. It makes people more interested in them.

      • morrigan01 says:

        A blue-check writer on twitter already declared Meghan to be the beautiful knight who rescued the handsome prince Harry from a tower. That Meghan was now the female Flynn Rider.

        But instead of living in a castle at the end, they live in a beautiful, diverse place with bright sunny days and taco trucks.

        (And then another blue check writer proceeded to write a small story of Prince Harry, now at peace in his life, enjoying going out for a taco).

        All the RR and others are doing by every petty little move they make regarding H&M is cementing this narrative with more and more people. And making themselves the racist, bitter and vindictive villains in the narrative of this love story.

      • bluemoonhorse says:

        @morrigan01 love this
        (And then another blue check writer proceeded to write a small story of Prince Harry, now at peace in his life, enjoying going out for a taco).

      • Bella DuPont says:

        @Morrigan

        Who are these blue checked writers please? I would love to check the tweets out…..pwetty pwease…..

      • MsIam says:

        Actually @morrigan01 it should be an In-N-Out Burger, according to some dumb story I read in Yahoo, lol. At any rate, H&M are free and they can’t live their life to please the tabloids. If the royals are fine with Fergie Duchess Skin Care cream or Buckingham Palace vodka then there should not be any lip about H&M.

      • morrigan01 says:

        @Bella DuPont

        It took me a minute, (I finally had to google to find the tweet) but here’s the thread that set if off (From Jessica Ellis):

        https://twitter.com/baddestmamajama/status/1287082136017625089

        And here’s the thread of the Harry & Taco Truck Story:

        https://twitter.com/slhamlet/status/1287330939362611201

        Enjoy! 🙂

    • Edna says:

      It’s obvious no one is doing any long term strategic thinking over there. What message does it send to the international community if you strip the Royal titles of a blood born prince who has done nothing wrong? All this mass hysteria and faux outrage in the British Media is driven by anger, pettiness and racism. And I wouldn’t be surprised if the government, courtiers and William we’re behind it. Serves the government because it distracts from the problems (Brexit, pandemic, recession) facing the country. And the courtiers and William are mad and jealous.

      • Izzy says:

        They would have to be capable of strategic thinking, and every move shows they aren’t…

      • Lemons says:

        They aren’t thinking because they don’t have any real friends, just sycophants and hanger-ons. No one close to them is side-eyeing this whole operation and that’s what good friends would be doing right now.

    • cc says:

      Also, and I’m not really up on all of this, but if they take away a dukedom, can’t they then take away the monarch?

    • Dropbear says:

      This! The only way to win is not to play, in the games BRF and BM have got going on. Like you said @morrigan01, H and M are not engaging with either and instead are moving upwards and onwards to live their best lives. That is the best revenge and the BRF and BMs are having extinction bursts over all of it…now where’s the popcorn 😎

    • Regular Poster says:

      Harry and Meghan are SHARP. He grew up in this royal “family” – she made it in Hollywood. The BRF has met its match and I love it. I love that Harry and Meghan are in the US now. It’s possibly the one good thing of 2020!

  14. Rae says:

    Honestly, it’s so tiring watching them to backflips to find another hook to try and harpoon them with.

    The frustrating this is that they cannot seem to recognise how it points to their prejudices. How unhealthy and unfair it is.

  15. Becks1 says:

    So the benefit of them paying back the Frogmore renos – and I’m firmly on team “they shouldn’t have felt they had to but I understand why they did” – is that it just makes the inconsistency and hypocrisy surrounding the Sussex coverage that much more obvious. Those of us who have been following the Sussexes obviously know that the goalposts are going to keep moving, and that there isn’t really anything they can do to make the haters happy. But every day/week that becomes more obvious to the casual observer. the press has been in a frenzy for years now and has really pushed all these negative stories about the Sussexes, but as time goes in it just becomes easier and easier to see the desperation, and I think its starting to work in the Sussexes favor and against the press.

  16. ahuman says:

    When an athlete moves to another team for the sole purpose of earning more money, does anyone expect that athlete to give up any titles or monies earned with the previous team? When an adult chooses to work in a field different from the famous family business, does anyone expect that adult to give up their last name or inheritance? Why are false conditions being applied to pressure a good man to sever his birthright to his family name/titles/money? Simple. Because, above all, this white man honors a black woman.

  17. Lucy2 says:

    Since they paid for it all, they should install some serious locks and security systems so that no one else can go in there except for them.

  18. Faye says:

    The BRF really fucked up letting the press over there go gangbusters against Harry and Meghan without any move to call off the hounds.

    Harry seems completely done with them. He wanted it publicly known that Charles offered assistance and they told him no.

  19. RoyalBlue says:

    i am amazed that the media is allowed to use its platform to bully people. this is crazy that no one speaks up on this daily targeted attack. how on earth is that allowed. this is something that can affect people’s mental health! and what is the champion of heads up, prince willieleaks himself, doing? nothing.

    • BnLurkN4eva says:

      The media we are all consuming is a white supremacist media, which means like the American police wall of blue, the media has a wall of silence when it comes to abuses such as what Meghan has been experiencing. They will not call it out for what it is no matter how obvious and abusive it is, not to mention that it’s actually a good story to report on. The Duchess of Sussex is being abused by the British Media because she is not white, tune in at 9am on CNN for the latest. This should have been the headline years ago, but don’t hold your breath. Never going to happen because they protect each other and only give lip service to informing the people. The reason why fake news is a thing is because they media has lost all credibility with the public and they only have themselves to blame.

    • Sid says:

      The British media is known for being extra vicious, to the point where British celebrities and public figures openly talk about it when they are overseas. I don’t understand how it got to be so bad.

  20. LizzieI t says:

    Continual faux outrage over possible projects such as a Diana documentary. It will never end as long as they genertates clicks.

  21. lanne says:

    The BM and the RF don’t seem to realize that the more they push at the Sussexes, the less likely it will be that they EVER return to the UK. That’s really dumb. Thet just can’t help but squander a globally popular couple that could be such as asset to their brand. The more they push, the more the Sussexes are validated by leaving. One of the most beloved story archetypes in history is that of the star-crossed lovers who beat the odds and the obstacles to be together. The RF is setting themselves up to be the villians in one of the 21st centuries most visible love stories. Humorously enough, by chasing the Sussexes out, Willie-poo is ensuring that he will forever be tied to and compared with his brother. Every tour (few as they will be for the near future), every project, every action he takes and that Palace Barbie takes will be measured against the Sussexes. Congrats, kids! You’re getting EXACTLY what you deserve, Cambridges!

  22. Alexandria says:

    And where’s the Queen and Charles during all this faux outrage?

    We see you. You’re just as despicable as the press, don’t act so high class and mighty.

    • RoyalBlue says:

      thank you. the silent ones sit by and benefit from this. charles i 👁👁 you!

    • ABritGuest says:

      Also interesting that the ‘concerned for taxpayers’ critics have nothing to say about the sovereign grant getting this contribution (not taxpayers) but doubt annual grant will reflect this surplus contribution next year. the Queen is also getting full grant even though royals are doing much less because of covid. Doubt grant has been reduced to reflect fact that 3 working royals have stepped down either.

  23. LisaT says:

    The RR are now saying that H&M received enough from Charles to live off for a year. Apparently it was also enough to pay their security costs. So, there argument moves to H&M know how to live on a budget. They are also saying the Queen does not own the cottage. I wonder what I would take for them to sop covering H&M.

    • ABritGuest says:

      I wouldn’t be surprised if that’s CH playing the good dad image just as we were led to believe there was all this quiet palace support behind the scenes for Meghan. Or press spinning so idea they are still beholden to the taxpayer.

      I don’t doubt Charles’ offer to support them as reported when they left but can see it being turned down as money seems to be used for control in the BRF so feel there’s spin here. A reporter said yesterday Harry had wanted to pay it off at once in January but the Firm didn’t think he was serious and then suggested an instalment plan. Think it was the Firm& press’ plan to use Frogmore as a carrot.

      The New York Times edited an article to say they hadn’t received money from Duchy of Cornwall since leaving in March& when they bought the house articles in the US press said they had been using their own funds. Tyler Perry’s place had its own security they were using. Press suggest they were staying there for free (who knows) and they’ve probably not been out much because of Covid so would they need funds from Charles?

      Plus the Netflix deal has clearly been in the making for a while so possible they’ve just been living on their own money until they got signing fees etc.

    • Snuffles says:

      That doesn’t make sense. Why would they simultaneously take money from Charles AND pay millions of dollars for Frogmore?

      If they needed Charles’ money, then they couldn’t have paid off Frogmore.

      It’s another BS lie to give them continued excuse to connect them to The Crown.

    • BayTampaBay says:

      @LisaT – QEII does not own Frogmore Cottage. Frogmore Cottage is owned by the Crown Estates.

      QEII personally owns the Sandringham Estate and the Balmoral Estate.

  24. Marivic says:

    WILLIAM, the British haters and the Royal Rota are losing their minds over the fortunate circumstances the Sussexes have been blessed with despite the corona virus. Who would have thought they could close a 9-digit million dollar deal during a pandemic? Who would have thought they could buy themselves a mansion in a posh haven for the mega rich? Who would have thought they could pay back the million dollar renovation cost for their Frogmore home and reimburse the British taxpayers in full? Who would have thought these are all possible in 6 months and in the midst of lockdown due to a pandemic? Wow! Unbelievably amazing. That’s why William, the British press and the Royal Rota are drooling and salivating in rage over the fortunes and the fortunate circumstances of the Sussexes. Now they are coming at them and are in full force to demolish the Sussexes. Team Sussex. More power to PHarry and Meghan.

  25. Lisa says:

    These people do not understand that the titles would take an act of parliament and even if they got it removed he would still be a Prince.

  26. TheOriginalMia says:

    I’m pissed they paid it back, when none of the others have done the same. OTOH, the flex is glorious. He didn’t take Charles’ money to pay it back. He didn’t take the royal’s offer of $18K per month. He said…here, take my money and STFU about it. LOVE IT! Do your thing, Harry. I know the RRs & BM will twist themselves into pretzels to find something to complain about. It’s what they do. But Harry can’t hear them anymore. He’s beyond them.

  27. Jean says:

    I’m not gonna lie, I’m appalled that the queen actually took this money. I feel like she should have refused it because like you said, it was a gift.

    • L4frimaire says:

      Same here. The Queen should have refused to take it and either put it in trust for Archie or donated it to a worthy cause. It certainly isn’t going back to the taxpayer. That’s the last time the Sussexes will ever accept any” gifts” from the Royal family.

    • MsIam says:

      The Queen didn’t get the money, the Sovereign Grant did. The article called it a contribution to the Sovereign Grant so it sounds like Harry or his people dealt with the managers of the grant directly.

  28. My3cents says:

    I’m waiting for them to get the bill for 3 hours worth of tiara wearing from petty Betty.

    • HeatherC says:

      Oh yes. A charge for labor in removing the tiara from the vault and cleaning it. A charge for transporting it to where Meghan was. A charge for handing it off to be placed on her head. A charge for time used (3 or so hours). A charge to remove it from her head. A handling charge to hand it back to the transporter. A charge for transporting it back to the vault. A charge for cleaning it again and securing it back in the vault.

      Also a non refundable retroactive deposit in case of breakage (because Petty Betty knows that can happen, she apparently broke her mother’s tiara on her wedding day). Along with a non refundable retroactive deposit to the guy who would fix the tiara in case of breakage.

      At this late date, all charges subject to interest and to be paid immediately.

  29. Dinah says:

    By paying for the renovation costs, Harry put a bomb under the Windsor’s state-funded free housing; he has set a precedent. The rest of the royals should no longer be allowed to live in royal residences for free at the state’s expense; not the divorced royals, not the non-working royals with their partners, not the working royals, not even the queen.

    They’ll be pissed off with Harry for showing them that it’s not that hard to take your own money – of which they all have plenty millions, parked somewhere – to pay for your own housing and living expenses.
    I await the public anger and demand to cut all the hangers on off the public purse, regarding free housing and other expenses.

    I’m glad Harry slapped the queen in the face for being such a bloody scammer: her housing wedding present in the servant quarters, turned out to be a con act (only for the Sussex’s, not for any other royals).

    • JanetDR says:

      It makes me mad too! It would make sense only if whoever moved in paid them for it😡 But there! They can walk away free and clear with the “What about the Renovations ?!” laid to rest.

  30. February-Pisces says:

    It’s not even about the money, it’s about punishment. They are determined to strip harry of everything little thing because they are so mad at the fact he married a biracial woman, who happened to be a hell of a lot more attractive, intelligent and more successful than their ‘English rose’ duchess. So many miserable moaning women on twitter are still mad, even after all their protests about paying it back, because they weren’t expecting him to say ‘here’s your money’. Now they want their titles.

    They don’t mind paying millions for William and Kate’s two mansions because it’s a reward for them being so dull, boring and basic, which is what they love. They won’t be happy until Meghan and harry and living in a caravan and William and Kate are living in 10 Stately homes paid for by the tax payer because they are determined for Kate to “win”. All those miserable Karen’s see themselves in her because they too are most likely just a dull and boring, and women like Meghan make them feel insecure because they know they will never be able to shine like her.

    Anyway here’s your money, except that the taxpayer won’t ever see it cos it will go straits to the queen who will probably use it to pay off Andrews chalet bill.

    • MsIam says:

      Since those people (bots and trolls) will never be happy then why continue to listen to them? They can’t control Harry and Meghan, really they never could because otherwise the Sussexes never would have left.

      • February-Pisces says:

        The trolls and bots demanded the money back, now they have it they are even more unsatisfied, which goes to show the issue has nothing to do with money. Just like when the trolls told them to leave, the left and were more mad than ever. The issues they keep pretending to be mad at clearly aren’t the real issue, but just a way to legitimise their hatred.

        They keep throwing these curve balls at them hoping they would falter, and the fact they keep knocking them back only makes them more mad. The real goal of breaking them up so he marries someone more boring that kate, isn’t working,lol.

  31. Rosa D says:

    The UK media is corrupt, sleazy and rotten to the core. There are massive issues that are being ignored (Covid, multiple lockdowns, poverty, our incompetent government), while they focus on celebrity news and the royals.

    As for the RRs – what morons. One of the main reasons H&M are global is because these clowns amplified the hate. That lead to susssexsquad and non-royals coming out in support of H&M. People can see the racism, the double standards.

    So bravo to the couple, I wish them a lifetime of peace, love, faith and success. They are using their considerable privilege to make a stand. And long may they do so.

  32. L4frimaire says:

    I think they shouldn’t have paid this at all, and they had an existing agreement in place to pay it off. However the Royal family once again refuses to step in and speak up, so Harry paid off the ransom. There are a lot better things they can do with their money and time. They need to stop responding to every demand from the press because the goalposts are always moving.Even now they are not satisfied and want more from them. Also, it looks like they can just throw around money, which they can’t.If I were them, I wouldn’t even bring up the titles because those calling for it know it has nothing to do with the Sussexes and it would only escalate tension. They already agreed to the conditions of not using the titles and HRH, and word Royal. The rest of these demands is just resentment. Next they’ll be asking the UK to ban entry to Meghan.

    • MsIam says:

      Exactly, a line has to be drawn. And the royals should be the one stepping in to say enough. Because if the press believes they can get Harry and Meghan to hop and skip to their tune then won’t the other royals be next? They are consigning themselves to be hostages to the tabloids forever.

      • CC says:

        They are consigning themselves to be hostages to the tabloids forever.

        They are already hostages, that’s why they can’t say anything.

    • Nyro says:

      I’m glad they paid it off. It was the one thing in their “one year review” contract that was still holding them to the royals financially. Better to give them all the no st now then be tied to them for another decade over a measly 18,000 bucks a month. They said they were going to pay for the renovations. And so they’ve simultaneously kept their word and cut what was to be a decade long hold on them by the it abusers. It was the smart thing to do.

  33. Mindy_Dopple says:

    So I’m of two thinking on this. This whole drama has reminded all of us of one horrible abusive relationship or another. It either occurred to someone we know or to us personally. During my first divorce, my ex had helped me purchase a car – he purchased it in cash to save me the interest and I agreed to pay him back monthly. Even though we were ending because HE CHEATED, I said I would continue to pay him the money and even drafted some shitty agreement and had it notarized. I wanted to remain above it all in his eyes. BUT in a few months I felt differently and stopped paying him. He never approached me about it. And that’s that. I have a friend though who is determined to keep some tangible relationship to their ex through this and that. Maybe H & M thought, fuck it, we’ll just give it to them and call it a day. It’s pennies compared to what we just scored, it sets a precedent and a sends a very strong FU message. I hope after this though they just stop talking to them. This was the last agreement they had and even one more months still attached to them was too much. Good for them.

  34. Sam says:

    I think if they are paying this off something bigger is coming.

  35. Flying Fish says:

    Yessssssssssss. Now H&M please do not step foot on that property again.

  36. Mariane says:

    The way the firm treated the sussexs and them having to repay this will set a precedent for the cambridge kids. In a post brexit Britain(England& wales after Scottish referendum & possibly Ireland’s reunification), people wont be as understand to their excessive spending & luxuries curtsy of taxpayers.
    The firm’s worst nightmare is playing out in that they now have NO CONTROL whatsoever on harry and together with meghan he has surpassed his mother’s popularity. For example camilla & sophie have been out doing events for several weeks now but they never had a article written about them. RRs/tabloids occasionally feature them on their Twitter feed but nothing big. This is only the beginning. Once covid crisis ends & Harry and Meghan are back to normal operations they’ll be overtaking their coverage and wont be able to control/coordinate their schedules. I hope the sussexs skip topping the colour and have the invictus concert on that day.

    • Nyro says:

      I hope they don’t go to any “family” events, at least not for a while. Let those losers stand on their own without them.

  37. MJM says:

    I wonder if Harry removing himself from the line of succession will be the next move. I think if there were a way for them to give up their titles they would. They are more of a hindrance than help imo.

    • Nyro says:

      No. They’ve given up all that was agreed to back in January. Their “debt” has been paid. Enough is enough.

  38. blunt talker says:

    I will say this until hell freezes over-the main theme of these attacks is control of the Sussex family-these media tabs-hogs/heifers cannot stand it mentally that Harry and Meghan are writing their own narrative come hell or high water-there is no such thing as fair and accurate reporting in the Uk-their minds are in the sewer-sinister mentality-immoral to their very core. Harry Meghan have shown more grace and class during this drama than anyone thought they would have-since these so called royalists seemed to be unhinged-just think what the history books will print about their behavoir and constant bullying of a royal family member and his family. It is going to horrendous on their so called royal writing legacies-they actually are showing the world what is wrong with the monarchy versus humanity. My heart is truly behind the Sussex family -they have every right as human beings to be human-GOD DON’T LIKE UGLY-THEY WILL-(the British bigots, haters,and destroyers of god’s human family will reap what they sow. Everybody is a part of God’s family-the hateful people cannot take this away from the Sussex family or anyone they don’t like.