The Queen has reportedly told the pregnant Duchess of Sussex, that she "understands why" the latter has not flown from the United States to the UK accompanying Prince Harry to attend Prince Philip's funeral on Saturday, People magazine reported on Tuesday.
Meghan Markle is said to have "wanted" to attend the Duke of Edinburgh's funeral but was cautioned against doing so by her doctor because of the 10-hour flight across the Atlantic. Harry is quarantining for five days at Frogmore Cottage, the couple's former home on Windsor Castle's grounds, before attending the funeral at St George's Chapel.
"It was always a given that Harry would return to England for his grandfather's passing," the report quotes an undisclosed California source as saying, who added that after Philip's death both Meghan and Harry "were in contact with the Queen."
A source in California has insisted that the 94-year-old monarch told Meghan she "understands" why she did not come, despite earlier reports that she missed it to avoid being "the center of attention."
"Meghan expressed condolences. The Queen understands why she can't travel at the moment," the source added.
Meghan and Harry's second child, a girl, is expected to be due this summer.
Just hours after arriving in the UK and beginning quarantine, the Duke of Sussex paid tribute to Philip, calling the 99-year-old consort a "master of the barbecue, legend of banter, and cheeky right to the end."
According to UK media, Harry has chosen Frogmore Cottage at Windsor Castle, where the Queen resides, over Kensington Palace, where his brother lives with his wife and three children. Frogmore, which has four bedrooms and a nursery, is located near winding lakes, wooded mounds, glades, walks, and bridges. The property experienced extensive renovations that cost £2.4 million in government funds to transform five properties back into a single house.
The royal couple has since paid for the upgrades with funds from a lucrative contract with Netflix, which is said to be worth more than £100 million.
After being deprived of his military responsibilities by the Queen when he and Meghan left royal duties last year, Harry will likely be the only senior royal not wearing an Army uniform at Prince Philip's funeral in Windsor.