People USA – July 29, 2019

of [Meghan and Kate’s] relationship

strengthening.”

The new setup has also helped

them focus on their specific roles

within the royal family. “They all

know what’s at stake, and William

and Harry know that their grand-

mother [Queen Elizabeth] in par-

ticular needs them to be on the

same page,” says a friend.

The pressure was especially in-

tense for Meghan, an American

who left her friends, family and

career in Hollywood to start a new

life in England with Harry. “She

pretty much arrived in the U.K.

and went straight into learning

how to be a royal,” says the insider.

“Moving to a new country is not

an easy thing. Then you multiply

that it’s the royal family and comes with thou-

sands of years of pomp and circumstance. Here she

was planning her wedding, which anyone who has

done it knows how stressful that is, while also im-

mersing herself in a new country, a new family, a

new life, all while living in a fishbowl.”

Kate, who dated William for nearly a decade be-

fore they wed in 2011, has now lived almost half

her life in the royal spotlight and feels more sure-

footed than ever. “You’re seeing more confidence

from Meghan recently but also from Kate,” says

the insider. Palace sources emphasize that there is

room in the public space for their distinct strengths

and interests to shine. “Coming from different

backgrounds, I think, they have more the makings

of a team than people imagined,” says longtime roy-

als author Robert Lacey. “And they have a common

interest as partners to these two men who are so

crucial to the monarchy, along with their children.”

Those children, of course, help unite the young

families even more. “Harry and William were very

fortunate to have an incredibly robust friendship

with their cousins growing up,” says Arbiter. “They’ll

want to follow a similar mold with their children.

The royal cousins are the only other people on the

planet who understand this life. We’ll see that rela-

tionship and shared camaraderie as they get older.”

Kate and Meghan now both face the difficult

job of raising their children in the public eye while

maintaining a sense of privacy—for both them-

selves and their children. “Meghan has struggled

with the intensity of the spotlight,” says a source

close to the royal household. “Although she is a

former actress, this is on a different level.”

And no one understands the pressure Meghan

is under more than Kate. “It is an isolated exis-

tence,” says the insider. Motherhood itself can be

the same, something Kate herself has acknowl-

edged. “It is lonely at times, and you do feel quite

isolated,” she has said. “But so many other moth-

ers are going through exactly what you are going

through.” Adds Arbiter: “Babies are a great leveler.

The minute you’re bonding over your stories and

sleepless nights, suddenly all the stuff that mat-

tered before doesn’t matter anymore.”

By Erin Hill. With Monique Jessen, Simon Perry

and Michelle Tauber

The Grammy winner, 72, was

a close friend of Prince Harry’s

mother, Princess Diana,

and has remained close

with him. (He performed

at both Diana’s funeral and

Meghan and Harry’s wedding

reception.) The royals greeted

the singer with a big hug

on July 14 at the Lion King

premiere, where Sir Elton

also whispered words of

encouragement into Meghan’s

ear—and got a smile when he

complimented her shoes!

ELTON JOHN’S

ROYAL TOUCH

46 July 29, 2019 PEOPLE

QUEEN BEY

MEETS HER

‘PRINCESS’

At the Lion King

premiere, Beyoncé

(with husband

Jay-Z) leaned

in for a hug and

called Meghan

“my princess.” She

also said Archie is

“so beautiful.”

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