Prince Harry has claimed the leaking of his wife Meghan Markle's handwritten letter to her estranged father "caused" her devastating miscarriage.
The Duchess of Sussex wrote to Thomas Markle on the Queen's advice after he posed for set up paparazzi photos and made negative comments about the royal family in the press.
However the letter was leaked and large chunks printed in the Daily Mail. Meghan successfully sued publishers of the Daily Mail, Associated Newspapers Limited (ANL), in 2021 after the Mail On Sunday published parts of the "personal and private” letter she had sent to Thomas Markle.
Now in their Netflix docuseries, Harry and Meghan have opened about their tragic loss - which occurred on the morning they moved into their current home.
Discussing her loss in July 2020, Meghan told the Netflix documentary Harry & Meghan: "I was pregnant, I really wasn’t sleeping and the first morning that we woke up in our new home is when I miscarried.”
He told Netflix: "I believe my wife suffered a miscarriage because of what the Mail did. I watched the whole thing. Now do we actually know the miscarriage was caused by that? Of course, we don’t.
"But bearing in mind the stress that caused, the lack of sleep and the timing of the pregnancy, how many weeks in she was, I can say from what I saw, the miscarriage was created by what they were trying to do to her.”
Discussing her miscarriage in July 2020, Meghan tells the Netflix documentary Harry & Meghan: “I was pregnant, I really wasn’t sleeping and the first morning that we woke up in our new home is when I miscarried.”
Meghan Markle 'fell to the ground' in her new home when suffered the huge loss, Suits actress Abigail Spencer recalled.
She described driving up to Harry and Meghan’s new home to help them unpack and says she instantly knew "something is off."
She said: "She’s showing me the home, and it’s very mixed emotions. 'Here’s our new home’ but she's like ‘I’m having a lot of pain.’
"She was holding Archie and she just fell to the ground.”
It's not the first time Meghan has opened up about the miscarriage, and she bravely shared her story in a moving open letter in the New York Times.
She revealed she fell ill at home in Los Angeles before going to hospital, describing herself watching her husband Prince Harry's 'heart break as he tried to hold the shattered pieces of mine' while grieving for their unborn child.
Her article began: "It was a July morning that began as ordinarily as any other day: Make breakfast. Feed the dogs. Take vitamins. Find that missing sock. Pick up the rogue crayon that rolled under the table. Throw my hair in a ponytail before getting my son from his crib.
"After changing his diaper, I felt a sharp cramp. I dropped to the floor with him in my arms, humming a lullaby to keep us both calm, the cheerful tune a stark contrast to my sense that something was not right.
"I knew, as I clutched my firstborn child, that I was losing my second."
The Duchess continued: "Hours later, I lay in a hospital bed, holding my husband's hand.
"I felt the clamminess of his palm and kissed his knuckles, wet from both our tears. Staring at the cold white walls, my eyes glazed over. I tried to imagine how we'd heal."
Meghan, who once described motherhood as being on her "bucket list", said she watched her husband's heart break.
During the article, the Duchess also described a moment on their royal tour in South Africa at the end of September 2019 when a journalist asked her "are you OK?"
She said at the time she responded “thank you for asking, not many people have asked if I’m OK" but did not realise her words would resonate with many.
Meghan says as she lay in hospital following the loss of her baby, she realised the only way to begin healing was to ask Harry, "are you OK?"
The Duchess went on to speak about the losses many other people have endured this year, amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Speaking about the article in episode 6, Meghan added: "When I reveal things that are moments of vulnerability, when it comes to having a miscarriage and maybe having felt ashamed of it.
"Like 'It’s okay, you’re human. It’s okay to talk about that. I could make the choice to never talk about those things, or I could make the choice to say that with all the bad that happens, the good is being able to help other people. That’s the point of life right?"
Her mum Doria added: "I thought she was brave and courageous but that doesn’t surprise me because she is brave and courageous.”
The royal family and Palace aides were steeling themselves for bombshells asVolume II of the Harry & Meghan series dropped on Netflix this morning.
Last week, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex railed against their treatment by the Firm, and the pair further discussed their relationship with the Royal Family and the media today.
Meghan’s lawyer Jenny Afia, in a trailer released on Wednesday, alleged she had seen evidence of briefing from the Palace against the couple to suit other people’s agenda.
The duchess herself was seen saying: "You would just see it play out, like a story about someone in the family would pop up for a minute and they’d go 'We’ve got to make that go away’.”
Her friend Lucy Fraser added: "Meg became this scapegoat for the Palace. And so they would feed stories on her whether they were true or not to avoid other less favourable stories being printed.”
Ms Afia said: "There was a real kind of war against Meghan and I’ve certainly seen evidence that there was negative briefing from the Palace against Harry and Meghan to suit other people’s agendas.”
Harry, in another trailer, said "They were happy to lie to protect my brother (William). They were never willing to tell the truth to protect us”, while Meghan said she was “fed to the wolves”.
Meanwhile, the royal family, including King Charles and Prince William are out on a joint engagement today, putting on a united front as they join the Princess of Wales for her Christmas carol concert in Westminster Abbey.
Nearly 2,000 people are set to gather at Abbey for some festive cheer, staged to hail the “selfless efforts of individuals, families and communities across the UK, and celebrate and showcase the joy that human connection and togetherness can bring”.
Kensington Palace said the second carol service Kate has held was dedicated to the late Queen Elizabeth II and the values she demonstrated throughout her life, including “duty, empathy, faith, service, kindness, compassion and support for others”.
The first part of Sussexes’ six-part show has become the streaming giant’s most-watched documentary in a premier week, a spokesman revealed this week, with a staggering 81.55 million hours viewed.
Buckingham Palace and Kensington Palace have declined to comment so far on any allegations
Last week, royal insiders have said the King and William will keep “a dignified silence” and not engage in a “tit-for-tat” battle.
Associated Newspapers have yet to comment and the Mirror has approached.
