Every time the palace protected the royal family against the press

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Royal Family

Members of the royal family on the balcony of Buckingham Palace watch a fly-past of aircraft by the Royal Air Force, in London on June 8, 2019. Neil Mockford/Getty Images

  • Meghan Markle told Oprah that the palace was “willing to lie” to protect other royals.

  • “They were not willing to tell the truth to protect myself and my husband,” the duchess said.

  • Here’s every time the palace defended the royals against the press since Markle joined the family.

  • Visit Insider’s homepage for more stories.

The palace shut down reports that Kate Middleton told off Meghan Markle for berating her staff in 2018.

Kate Middleton Meghan Markle

Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, stand on the balcony of Buckingham Palace during Trooping The Colour 2018 on June 9, 2018, in London, England. Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images

Middleton’s representatives at Kensington Palace denied reports that the Duchess of Cambridge and the Duchess of Sussex got into a dispute after Markle allegedly berated members of Middleton’s staff.

“This never happened,” a palace spokesperson said at the time, according to The Mirror.

Kensington Palace gave a rare comment to deny reports that Middleton got “baby botox” in July 2019.

kate middleton christmas

Kate Middleton on December 25, 2018. Stephen Pond/Getty Images

Representatives for the royals don’t usually respond to the press unless the story is more serious in nature — which is why it came as a surprise to many when Kensington Palace denied rumors that Middleton had botox.

The palace responded to questions over whether the duchess had “baby botox” after a plastic surgery clinic used photos of the royal on its Instagram page.

A spokesperson for Middleton said at the time that it was “categorically untrue.”

“In addition, the Royal Family never endorses commercial activity,” they added.

Buckingham Palace gave Prince Andrew a platform to distance himself from Jeffrey Epstein.

Prince Andrew and Emily Maitlis on BBC Newsnight.
Prince Andrew and Emily Maitlis on BBC Newsnight. BBC

A statement was released in 2015 and again re-circulated in 2019 denying reports that Prince Andrew was involved in Jeffrey Epstein’s sex trafficking scandal.

Virginia Roberts, who accused Epstein of recruiting her as his sex slave back in 2001 when she was 17 years old, said in 2015 that Epstein forced her to have sex with Prince Andrew at his private island in the Virgin Islands.

“It is emphatically denied that The Duke of York had any form of sexual contact or relationship with Virginia Roberts. Any claim to the contrary is false and without foundation,” the palace’s statement read in response to the allegations.

Royal officials took things a step further in November 2019 by opening up Buckingham Palace as the setting for Andrew’s highly controversial BBC Newsnight interview, where he was given a wider platform to defend himself against the allegations.

The palace later denied reports that the duke had been forced to resign from royal duties.

Prince Andrew appearing on BBC Newsnight with Emily Maitlis.

Prince Andrew appearing on BBC Newsnight with Emily Maitlis. BBC Newsnight

Following the backlash from the Newsnight interview, the Duke of York said in a statement that he “asked Her Majesty if I can step back from public duties for the foreseeable future,” to which the Queen agreed.

The Mail Online’s royal correspondent Rebecca English initially reported that “the duke was forced out of public life after lengthy discussions” with both Prince Charles and Her Majesty.

However, a palace spokesperson told Insider that this wasn’t the case.

“No, this was a personal decision,” the spokesperson said. “The Duke of York had discussions with The Queen, The Prince of Wales, and other family members.”

The Queen’s dressmaker was given permission to dispel reports that Her Majesty broke protocol by embracing Michelle Obama.

Michelle Obama

L-R) Queen Elizabeth II, US President Barack Obama, Michelle Obama and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh arrive for a state banquet at Buckingham Palace on May 24, 2011, in London, England. Anwar Hussein / Contributor / Getty Images

The Queen personally gave her blessing to royal dressmaker Angela Kelly to share anecdotes about their time working together in the book, “The Other Side of The Coin,” published in 2019.

Kelly used the book to clear up rumors that the Queen broke protocol by embracing Michelle Obama during her State Visit in 2009, writing: “In reality, it was a natural instinct for the Queen to show affection and respect for another great woman, and really there is no protocol that must be adhered to.”

Middleton’s representatives shut down a report that claimed Harry and Meghan’s royal exit gave her an increased workload.

kate middleton princess charlotte

Kate Middleton and Princess Charlotte in 2016. Samir Hussein/Samir Hussein/WireImage/Getty Images

Last year Tatler magazine dedicated an issue to the Duchess of Cambridge, titled “Catherine the Great,” which included a lengthy feature with quotes from palace sources.

While one source suggested that Markle and Harry’s royal exit was unfair on Middleton and caused an increased workload for her, another source referenced an argument between Middleton and Markle at the royal wedding rehearsal in 2018.

Kensington Palace released a statement shortly afterward, claiming the article included “a swathe of inaccuracies and false misrepresentations which were not put to Kensington Palace prior to publication.”

Vanity Fair royal correspondent Katie Nicholl previously told Insider that the palace’s response was “a warning shot to the media.”

“When they feel that something is inaccurate and potentially damaging, they will refute it. The suggestion that Kate is exhausted and feels trapped and is unhappy about her workload is at the nub of the complaint,” Nicholl said. “She is working harder than ever at her request, so the idea she resents the workload isn’t the case.”

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