A Complete Timeline of Meghan Markle and Prince Harry's Relationship

Ever since news spread of the relationship between Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, the world can't stop talking about the couple. Even six years after word broke, the relationship between the Duke and Duchess of Sussex continues to make numerous headlines. After being the subject of so many stories, told by people other than themselves, the couple recently released their docuseries, Harry & Meghan, to finally tell the world their story from their point of view.

With the docuseries having already reached the top watched list on Netflix, it's clear that the hunger for the inside scoop about the couple and their ties to the royal family has only intensified. Whether you've already watched the docuseries and need a recap on the events that ensued or are just curious about the rundown on one of the world's most talked about couples, L'OFFICIEL has provided the complete timeline of Harry and Meghan's relationship.

After weeks of back-and-forth texting and Facetime calls, the couple desperately wanted to see each other again face to face. Harry was already heading to Botswana, and Meghan was free for the week, so she agreed to travel with him where they would spend a week isolated from the world in Africa. With no cell phone service, no plumbing, and having to share a tent, the couple had their initial awkward moments but found their footing as it "just felt so right," said Harry.

After months of secretly dating, the press finally finds out that Harry and Meghan are dating and spread the news. Having been alerted a day before that the news was going to come out, the couple used their last day of freedom partying with friends at a Halloween party.

Prince Harry confirmed the dating rumors after posting an unexpected statement regarding the unfair and unjust negative press Meghan has been subjected to. Part of the statement read, "But the past week has seen a line crossed. His girlfriend, Meghan Markle, has ben subject to a wave of abuse and harassment. Some of this has been very public—the smear on the front page of a national newspaper; the racial undertones of comment pieces; and the outright sexism and racism of social media trolls and web article comments."

On May 6, 2017, Prince Harry and Meghan attend their first public event as a couple at a charity polo match. As Prince Harry competed on the second day of the Audi Polo Challenge, Meghan supported him from the stands.

After their engagement was announced, the couple completed their first royal task by participating in a walkabout. If you're asking what a walkabout is, know that Meghan asked the same thing: "I never saw pictures or videos of a walkabout. Like, what's a walkabout?" A walkabout is simply when members of the royal family walk through the streets as they greet fans and well-wishers.

For Meghan's first Christmas spent with the royals, she and Harry spent time with the family at Sandringham followed by their attendance at the royals' Christmas dinner. In the third episode of Harry & Meghan, Meghan recalls having a wonderful time throughout the day, "I remember so vividly the first Christmas at Sandringham, calling my mom, and she's like 'How’s it going?' and I said 'Oh my gosh it’s amazing'."

In her interview with Oprah Winfrey, Meghan unveiled that she and Prince Harry had a private wedding three days before the televised royal one. "Three days before our wedding, we got married — no one knows that — but we called the Archbishop and said, 'This thing, this spectacle is for the world, but we want our union between us.' So the vows that we have framed in our room are just the two of us in our backyard with the Archbishop of Canterbury," Meghan said.

There's nothing like a royal fairytale wedding. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex got married at St. George's Chapel in Windsor on May 19, 2018. The wedding was one of the largest televised events of the year as more than 1 billion people tuned in to watch. The wedding itself was no small matter as around 600 guests attended the event, including A-listers such as Serena Williams, Priyanka Chopra, George and Amal Clooney, David and Victoria Beckham, Oprah Winfrey, Idris Elba, and Elton John. 

On May 6, 2019, Archie Harrison Mountbatten Windsor was welcomed into the world. After his birth, Prince Harry spoke to the press to announce the exciting news. “I’m very excited to announce that Meghan and myself had a baby boy this morning, a very healthy baby boy,” Prince Harry told the press. “It’s been the most amazing experience I can ever possibly imagine ... This little thing is absolutely to die for.”

Once a royal baby is born, it is tradition for the family to travel around on a tour to present the baby to the world. Four months after Archie was born, the Duke and Duchess took their first royal tour as a family to South Africa.

The British media's ruthless attack on Meghan continued as The Mail On Sunday published parts of a private letter for the world to see, originally sent by Meghan to her father, Thomas Markle. Meghan ultimately filed a lawsuit against the media company on the issue of privacy and copyright. Prior to their lawsuit, for months the couple had tried to work with the palace to take legal action, however, nothing was being done. As said by Meghan in the fifth episode of the docuseries, "that litigation served as a cataylst of everything unraveling."

While Meghan ends up winning the lawsuit, Prince Harry expressed in a statement the frustrations he's felt by the endless attacks by the media against his wife: "Unfortunately, my wife has become one of the latest victims of a British tabloid press that wages campaigns against individuals with no thought to the consequences – a ruthless campaign that has escalated over the past year, throughout her pregnancy and while raising our newborn son...To stand back and do nothing would be contrary to everything we believe in…There comes a point when the only thing to do is to stand up to this behaviour, because it destroys people and destroys lives.”

After a previous announcement about taking time off to focus on their family and then deciding to spend Christmas away from Sandringham and instead visit Meghan's mom, Doria Ragland, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex officially announced they would be stepping back from their duties as senior members of the Royal Family. Originally the plan was to only reduce their roles. As Meghan said, "We were stepping back, not stepping down, but just to have a reduced role."

Later that month, once Meghan was back in Canada with Archie, Prince Harry, Prince Charles, Queen Elizabeth II, and other senior royals were called into a roundtable meeting at Sandringham. In the docuseries, Harry explains that he was, essentially, presented with five options for how to move forward in which he chose option three: "Half in, half out. We would have our own jobs while still working in support of the Queen." However, it was clear to Harry that he was officially in a position where he was battling against those who were choosing obligations to the Institution over supporting the family. It was this time when a "wedge was put in between [Harry] and his brother."

Once a story came out that Prince William was bullying Meghan and the palace quickly worked to squash the story, it was clear to Harry and Meghan that the palace would never be willing to protect them as they would other members of the family. It was that moment in which they made the decision to step down from their roles completely.

In a personal opinion piece written for The New York Times in November 2020, Meghan shared that she suffered from a miscarriage in July 2020. "Losing a child means carrying an almost unbearable grief, experienced by many but talked about by few," she wrote. "In the pain of our loss, my husband and I discovered that in a room of 100 women, 10 to 20 of them will have suffered from miscarriage. Yet despite the staggering commonality of this pain, the conversation remains taboo, riddled with (unwarranted) shame, and perpetuating a cycle of solitary mourning."

Amidst this tragic period of time, the couple also reportedly moved to Montecito, CA (where they still live).

In a statement, the couple announced they would be working with Netflix to share their passions whilst also providing a platform to shed light on others within their community and around the world: "As new parents, making inspirational family programming is also important to us, as is powerful storytelling through a truthful and relatable lens. We are pleased to work with Ted and the team at Netflix whose unprecedented reach will help us share impactful content that unlocks action."

On Valentine's Day, the couple officially confirmed they were expecting their second child. A spokesperson told US Weekly that the couple was excited for this sweet addition to their growing family: "We can confirm that Archie is going to be a big brother,” the source said. “The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are overjoyed to be expecting their second child.”

The moment when numerous truths were revealed and hidden skeletons came out of the closet, Harry and Meghan didn't hold back in their interview with Oprah Winfrey. From unveiling that members of the royal court inquired about "how dark [Archie's] skin might be after he's born" to the couple feeling unprotected by the family, viewers learned more about Harry and Meghan's royal experience than we have ever had before. 

On March 3, 2023, the couple held a small christening ceremony for their daughter Lilibet at their home in Montecito, California. According to People, there were around 20-30 guests. Of those guests, King Charles, Queen Camilla, Prince William, and Kate Middleton were not in attendance, though they were given an invite.

Since the plans for King Charles's coronation went underway and after Prince Harry released his memoir, one of the biggest questions asked was regarding the attendance of Prince Harry and Meghan. Would they be invited? And if so, would they attend? Well, the first question has been addressed as there's been official confirmation that the couple has received an invite to the coronation. Though they have been invited, there is still no word on whether or not the couple plans on attending. 

While in New York, alongside Markle's mother Doria Ragland, the couple was almost involved in a near-fatal car accident from being chased by paparazzi according to Page Six. The news site reports that the trio were being relentlessly pursued by photographers for nearly two hours with some of whom nearly running into other cars as they chased the trio down. Fortunately, no one was injured, but a spokesperson mentioned the couple is very shaken and upset: "While being a public figure comes with a level of interest from the public, it should never come at the cost of anyone’s safety."

Following weeks of (now denied) separation rumors about the couple, the Duke and Duchess proved they're a united front after having a date night out in celebration of Markle's birthday. They had dinner at Tre Lune, a popular restaurant in Montecito that is frequented by numerous celebrities, such as Travis Barker who was at Tre Lune the same night at the Sussexes. The public outing also came after the collapse of their $20 million partnership with Spotify and Prince Harry's ongoing lawsuit against The Sun.

According to an insider that spoke to People though, the couple "just wants to focus on their kids and their life in Montecito" and "are very united when it comes to family values and how to raise their kids."