In the years before he married Meghan Markle, Prince Harry developed a reputation as a bit of a playboy.
But while we’re sure he never lacked female companionship in those days, Harry seems to have been more of a serial monogamist, and he devoted the majority of his twenties to on-again, off-again relationships with two different women — Chelsy Davy and Cressida Bonas.
Harry and Cressida dated from 2012 to 2014, and for much of that time, it looked as though they were headed for marriage.
There were even bogus reports that Harry and Cressida were engaged.
(There’s nothing new about the British tabloid press publishing misinformation about the personal lives of the royals.)
But the couple split under mysterious circumstances, and less than two years later, Harry started dating Meghan.
Less than two years after that, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex were married in what might prove to be the last royal wedding that anyone gave a crap about.
Now, Cressida is opening up about her breakup with Harry for the very first time, and some believe her words contain a coded cautionary message for Meghan Markle.
In an interview with the Daily Telegraph, Cressida spoke poignantly of the fear that prevented her from considering taking the next step with Harry.
And it seems that during the relationship, the mere thought of becoming a member of the royal family was enough to trigger intense feelings of anxiety for Bonas.
“The fear of failing, the fear of rejection, the fear of not getting it right, the fear of not being perfect … I think that has limited me in certain situations in my life,” Cressida revealed.
“I just think it has definitely given me a stronger sense of purpose and a stronger sense of what I want or don’t want,” she said of her split from Harry.
Meghan, of course, lived out Cressida’s fears by becoming a member of the royal family and constantly being made to feel as though she doesn’t live up to the expectations of her regal in-laws.
The situation was exacerbated by the fact that Meghan was targeted by the British press, and many who were in a position to help her chose to do nothing instead.
Harry was once considered one of the world’s most eligible bachelors, but it sounds as though in many ways, Cressida dodged a bullet.
These days, Bonas is the host of a British television show called White House Farm, which, despite the name, is not a documentary about the process of harvesting the sesame seeds for Trump’s Big Mac buns.
Speaking about her new gig, Cressida seems to sympathize with Meghan, who was forced to step down from the royal family in order to pursue her professional passions,
“I think that I work very, very hard, I love what I do, and I just hope that this role has shown people what I can do and what I would like to do going forward and not be caught in a box in any way,” Bonas said.
Well, Cressida may not have received a royal title — and it sounds like she’s perfectly fine with that — but in many ways, she would have fit right in.
After all, she’s clearly mastered the art of the subtly talking trash without mentioning anyone by name.