On Tuesday, Meghan Markle celebrated her 45th birthday. To mark the occasion, the Duchess of Sussex shared two black-and-white photos on her Instagram account, showing herself in a swimsuit holding a bunch of balloons and jumping into the water.
"Thank you for the birthday love," she wrote.
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The Duchess of Sussex shared two black-and-white photos on her Instagram account, showing herself in a swimsuit holding a bunch of balloons and jumping into the water
(Photo: Instagram)
(Photo: Instagram)
There is no way to know how many likes the photos received because Markle has chosen to hide the like count. She also disabled comments when she launched her Instagram account, meaning followers cannot leave comments, birthday wishes or congratulations there.
A few hours later, the duchess posted another video, this time in color, showing herself dancing in the kitchen while Prince Harry's voice could be heard in the background.
The duchess posted video, showing herself dancing in the kitchen
Instagram account of HELLO! magazine shared Markle's video, giving users an opportunity to comment there, though not necessarily with warm wishes.
"Can we please stop with her?" one follower wrote.
"The privacy tour continues. Still staying out of the spotlight and living a private life away from the media," another quipped.
"That's a shirt for someone who just got married! Happy 45th birthday to friendless Markle," another commenter wrote.
Alongside the critical comments were a number of supporters who wished the duchess a happy birthday, expressed hopes for many more happy years and defended her.
"All the haters can go straight to hell. They're obviously jealous because she's so happy," one fan wrote.
What stood out most on Markle's birthday was the complete silence from members of the royal family, who have often wished each other happy birthday on social media. The silence came after the recent family meeting between King Charles and Prince Harry, Meghan and their two children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet.
'Meghan felt humiliated having to stand aside'
(Photo: Jonathan Brady / POOL / AFP)
Just days after the visit to Britain, sources close to the duchess said she returned to the United States feeling upset.
"Meghan felt humiliated having to stand aside while Harry and the royal household argued over accommodations for her family," a source said. "Meghan is very supportive of Harry, but she was deeply saddened by how the trip unfolded."
And before anyone assumes it was simply a misunderstanding or that Charles and his staff were too busy to post on social media, the king's official Instagram account shared warm congratulations with Princess Eugenie, who had welcomed her third daughter the previous day.