Meghan Markle clashed with royal aide over accepting 'non-stop' freebie gifts, claims book
LONDON, UK: The book 'Courtiers: the Hidden Power Behind the Crown' by The London Times' royal correspondent Valentine Low claims that staffers had to tell Meghan Markle that accepting freebies broke royal rules. However, it didn’t go down well with the Duchess of Sussex when her personal assistant, Melissa Toubati, returned the free gifts.
An excerpt of the book, which is due to be published on October 6 in the UK, revealed, “Clashes centered on the free gifts that some companies would send Meghan. Deliveries were constantly arriving at Kensington Palace. Clothes, jewellery, candles… It was non-stop. Touabti was apparently punctilious in following the household rule that members of the Royal Family cannot accept freebies from commercial organisations. Her approach did not go down well with Meghan.” The book claims Toubati quit six months after Prince Harry and Meghan’s 2018 wedding, reports The Sun.
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'Meghan put lot of demands'
According to a 2018 report by Mirror, Toubati was overwhelmed with her "highly pressurised" job. A source said, "Her job was highly pressurised and in the end it became too much. She put up with quite a lot. Meghan put a lot of demands on her and it ended up with her in tears. She is hugely talented and played a pivotal role in the success of the royal wedding. She’ll be missed by everyone in the household. Melissa is a total professional and fantastic at her job, but things came to a head and it was easier for them both to go their separate ways.”
Royal biographer Robert Jobson said Meghan’s wedding preparations were so stressful Harry got ‘petulant’ with staff. He said, as quoted by Mirror, “Raising his voice on occasion, Harry would insist, ‘What Meghan wants, she gets.’” According to the outlet, when Toubati resigned as Markle's personal assistant, a palace source was authorized to praise her and the role she played in organizing Harry's royal wedding. However, one royal source also told the publication that Markle has been judged too harshly as she tries to fit into royal life. "She is simply not afraid to express her opinion. While many find her a little pushy there are many in the royal household who have quickly taken to her," said the source.
Harry and Meghan got married at St George's Chapel at Windsor Castle in 2018 with reports claiming the wedding was "hugely stressful" for everyone involved. As per a source, quoted by The Sun, "They (Harry and Meghan) insisted that they had the same inflation-adjusted budget for the wedding as William and Kate – she got the choir she wanted, the dress, the carriage procession, the tiara – she got everything she wanted."