She has been their emotional mainstay ‘rock’ and fellow Californian for the past six years.
So there’s no doubt about that Doria Ragland will miss her daughter, son-in-law and two grandchildren as they cross the ocean just as she turns 70 next week.
Meghan’s mother has been a constant presence in the family’s lives since the Duke Duchess of Sussex stepped down as a senior royal houses and moved to the US in 2020.
She lives in a bungalow in an affluent residential area outside the center of Los Angelesless than a two-hour drive from her daughter’s country home in Montecito.
However, with the couple about to move to Britain and Archie, seven, and Lilibet, five, to enroll in English school from September, it is possible that their loving, hands-on grandmother will make many visits, while maintaining her base on the west coast, where she has many friends.
Doria reportedly has a “granny flat” in their Montecito mansion and will be staying near the couple’s U.S. base, according to TMZ insiders.
Her bond with the couple was strong despite other strained relationships on both sides of the family – between Harry’s estrangement from his brother and Meghan not being on good terms with her father. Thomas Markle.
Doria even stayed with the Sussexes at Frogmore Cottage for more than a month when her grandson Archie was born, Harry’s book Spare revealed.
And the devoted mother has been described as a “rock” for Meghan and Harry during the difficult months when they left as working royals and moved to California.
Doria Ragland, Prince Harry and Meghan at the Ms. Foundation Women of Vision Awards in 2023
A former confidant of Doria told the Mail on Sunday: ‘She’s like the queen: she never complains or explains.’
Doria even made one brief appearance in the first season from Meghan’s Netflix show and attended Meghan’s “celebration brunch” with other members of her inner circle.
Wearing a tan halter-neck top and flowing orange pants, Doria arrived at the sun-drenched brunch party as Meghan could be heard gushing, “Oh, mommy’s here!”
As she admired the spread of champagne, mimosas, quiche, bacon, pancakes and salad, Doria asked, “Does the greenery come from the garden?” to which the Duchess replied: ‘Yes, the greenery comes from the garden.’
Doria said: ‘It’s beautiful. Well done!’
Harry and his mother-in-law Doria were seen looking on and raising a glass as the Duchess thanked those in attendance for ‘loving her so much and celebrating with her’.
Harry has also developed a close relationship with Doria in the years since he left the royal family – with a royal source revealing that the Duke of Sussex has grown incredibly close to Doria, who has been a ‘tower of strength’ for the couple.
A source said The sun rather: ‘Harry obviously doesn’t have a mother to turn to for advice, but he has always had an incredibly good bond with Doria and never more so than now.’
He previously described his future mother-in-law as “amazing” in a BBC interview to mark his engagement.
Doria was the only member of Meghan’s side of the family to attend the royal wedding and was described during the early months of Megxit as an “oasis of calm”, stoic and with unwavering loyalty to her daughter and son-in-law.
“I remember when I first met him,” Doria recalled in Harry and Meghan’s 2022 documentary.
Doria, a social worker and yoga instructor, has generally avoided the spotlight since attending the royal wedding at Windsor Castle in May 2018. Pictured with Meghan in May
She sat alone in a pew at the wedding, which was not attended by Meghan’s father Thomas Markle, whom she married in 1979 but divorced in 1987.
‘A handsome man of 1.80 meters with red hair, really good manners. It was just a lot of fun and they looked very happy together, like he was the one.
“Once it was announced that they were together, it seemed like a novelty.”
And Meghan has many positive things to say about her mother, who she describes as a “free spirit.”
‘I find inspiration in the strong women around me. Of course my mother is one of them,” Meghan told an Afro Women and Power Forum during a visit to Colombia.
“So much of the way I approach things is less about the fight and more about how we show up in a space and shower things with love, kindness and generosity.”
Doria also played an important role at the time of Queen Elizabeth II’s death in 2022, as she cared for Archie, then three, and Lilibet, then one, in Montecito.
The Sussexes were already in Britain at the time – having traveled to Manchester for a summit, then to Dusseldorf for an Invictus event and then back to London.
Ultimately, they had to extend their stay when Harry’s grandmother died on September 8, and had to make several more public appearances, including greeting mourners outside Windsor Castle and attending the funeral on September 19.
The Duchess later revealed on her Netflix show With Love, Meghan that the three-week period was the longest she had ever gone without seeing her children, leaving her feeling ‘unwell’.
Doria, a social worker and yoga instructor, has generally avoided the spotlight since attending the royal wedding at Windsor Castle in May 2018.
She sat alone in a pew at the wedding, which was not attended by Meghan’s father Thomas Markle, whom she married in 1979 but divorced in 1987.
But Doria sometimes appears in photos and videos her daughter shares — including in May during a Mother’s Day trip to Disneyland in Anaheim, California.
She joined Meghan, Harry, Archie and Lilibet for the outing, with the Duchess later sharing a photo of her mother on Instagram, accompanied by a red heart.
Doria was also seen enjoying time with Lilibet at the family’s pool in the Californian sunshine, in images shared by Meghan in January.
