King Charles will hand a New Year Honour to the royal aide who called Meghan Markle a bully.
Jason Knauf has been made a Lieutenant of the Royal Victorian Order (RVO) to recognise his services to the royal family.
Knauf worked for Meghan and Harry for seven years and later the then Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.
He ended his career with the royal household as chief executive of William and Kate’s Royal Foundation, stepping down at the end of 2021.
Honours within the RVO are in the King's gift and are bestowed independently of Downing Street to people who have served the monarch or the royal family in a personal way.
When working for the couple as their communications secretary in October 2018, Knauf emailed his concerns about Meghan to William’s then private secretary in an apparent attempt to force Buckingham Palace to protect staff.
According to The Times of London, the royal press secretary emailed Simon Case in 2018 complaining that Meghan was "bullying" junior staff in the palace.
"I am very concerned that the Duchess was able to bully two PAs out of the household in the past year," he wrote to Case, after first raising concerns with Samantha Carruthers, the head of HR, the Times said.
"The Duchess seems intent on always having someone in her sights," he continued.
"She is bullying Y (name removed) and seeking to undermine her confidence."
He added ominously, "I remain concerned that nothing will be done."
Meghan's legal team have in the past strenuously denied the allegation.
Prince Harry reportedly met with Knauf and begged him not to go forward with the complaints, a claim that Prince Harry has denied.
