Plans for a new Sussex.com website – and a relaunch of Harry and Meghan as a business and philanthropic entity – were hatched late last year in the wake of the ‘Royal racists’ disaster, domain name documents show.
Ownership of the domain expires in mid-December this year, indicating it was purchased around December 12, 2023.
At the time, the couple was under fire like never before following the publication of Omid Scobie’s Endgame book, which made a series of allegations that further damaged their relations with the royal family.
In the major revelation, which was only made in the Dutch version of the book, Kate, the Princes of Wales and King Charles were named as the two family members who had apparently speculated about how dark Archie’s skin might be.
Meghan had previously told Oprah Winfrey in an interview that the conversations about her son had taken place with Harry, but did not name the family members.
Ownership of the Sussex.com domain expires in mid-December this year, indicating it was purchased around December 12, 2023 (Photo: Sussex.com’s new homepage)
Royal biographer Omid Scobie published his book Endgame in December last year. Pictured: Mr Scobie speaks on ‘This Morning’ in defense of his book, sparking new row over ‘royal racists’
The book also said that Prince William has a short temper and claimed that Kate “spent more time talking about Meghan” than talking to her.
Prince Harry reportedly tried to extend an olive branch to the family by calling the King on his birthday in November.
Records show that the Sussex.com domain was originally owned by Sussex Systems Inc, a computer software company in Washington DC. That company first registered the domain in 1995.
It was for sale in 2011. It’s not clear who owned it before Harry and Meghan, but they likely had to pay a significant amount of money to secure it.
The couple have always denied working with Scobie on this book and its predecessor Finding Freedom, although Meghan was forced to apologize to the court after it emerged she had allowed a press secretary to meet the writers.
Yesterday it was claimed that the new website with their Sussex titles was a betrayal of their agreement with the late Queen Elizabeth.
The couple’s ‘provocative’ decision to relaunch their homepage under the name ‘Sussex.com’ led to accusations that they were trying to be more ‘royal’.
The top royal official must decide whether to hold the Sussexes to account or “let things run their course” to preserve the already fragile family peace.
Meghan and Harry hit the slopes in Whistler, Canada, on Wednesday as part of their three-day trip for the Invictus Games countdown
The Duchess of Sussex’s coat of arms can be found on the recently launched website Sussex.com
This is an image released by Kensington Palace on May 25, 2018 showing the Duchess of Sussex’s new coat of arms, which was released at the time of her wedding to Prince Harry
The growing row centers around the Duke and Duchess’ decision to replace their Archewell website – the umbrella name for all their philanthropic and business endeavors – with ‘Sussex.com’.
Well-placed sources said the new online venture would pose a ‘major challenge’ for the Lord Chamberlain of Buckingham Palace.
The new homepage for ‘The Office of Prince Harry and Meghan, The Duke and Duchess of Sussex’ went live on Monday evening.
It includes Meghan’s coat of arms and brilliant biographies for the couple, as well as the latest news about the couple.
Many close to the royal family believe this is a blatant breach of the supposedly ironclad guarantees Harry and Meghan gave the late queen when they acrimoniously quit as working royals in 2020, and puts them dangerously close to come close to using their royal status for commercial gain.
Others describe it as a betrayal of the agreement, ‘if not in the letter, then certainly in the spirit’.
But a source close to the couple dismissed the claims and defended the use of their royal titles for the website.
They said: ‘Prince Harry and Meghan are the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. That’s a fact. It’s their last name and family name.’
The palace declined to comment, preferring to focus on The King, who returned to London yesterday for meetings and cancer treatment.
But an insider said: ‘Buckingham Palace may be bound to take action. The King has other things to focus on at the moment and the last thing His Majesty needs is another fight with his son. But this won’t go down well at all.’
Prince Harry, who is fifth in line to the throne, is described on the website Sussex.com as a “humanitarian, military veteran, mental health advocate and environmentalist”
It is claimed that the new website with their Sussex titles was a betrayal of their agreement with the late Queen (Photo: The Duke and Duchess of Sussex with Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace in June 2018)
Meghan, whose Spotify podcast, acting career and lifestyle blog The Tig are all mentioned in her biography, has been hailed as a ‘feminist and advocate for human rights and gender equality’
Insiders highlighted the decision to only use Meghan’s royal coat of arms on the webpage and not Harry’s.
Some theorized that having the prince’s coat of arms would be too provocative “even for them.” Others wondered if it was because “this is ultimately a rebrand for Meghan.”
Meghan’s coat of arms reflects her California background. The shield contains the color blue to represent the Pacific Ocean, and yellow rays to symbolize sunshine.
Below the shield are the golden poppy, California’s state flower, and Wintersweet, a flower that grows in Kensington Palace and was also featured on her wedding veil.