In March of 2021, two British tabloids published scathing reports accusing Meghan Markle of bullying staff at Kensington Palace.
These reports came out just two days before Meghan’s controversial interview with Oprah Winfrey.
So it’s not surprising that they’ve now turned out to be completely bogus.
Yes, on Thursday, palace officials quietly closed their investigation into Meghan’s alleged misconduct.
The result, it will not shock you to learn, was that the Duchess does not appear to have mistreated any civilians in the manner described by the British press.
“Meghan is a fair boss and never bullied anyone who worked for her at the Palace in the first place. She’s happy that her name has been cleared from the defamatory claims,” reads a statement issued by reps for Meghan.
“She and Harry are looking forward to putting the incident behind them and are happily moving on with their lives in Montecito.”
Of course, the royals couldn’t simply allow Meghan to enjoy a bit of well-deserved vindication.
No, they’ve decided to keep the details of the investigation under wraps, probably so that it won’t be obvious that this was all a calculated attempt to try and draw attention away from Meghan’s Oprah interview.
“The couple is disappointed that the results of the review of the investigation will not be shared,” reps for Meghan said in response to the news.
“The review of the handling of historic bullying allegations was aimed at enabling the Royal Households to consider potential improvements to HR policies and procedures,” said a Palace spokesperson in a statement to BuzzFeed News.
“The review has been completed, and recommendations on our policies and procedures have been taken forward.”
Royal officials insist that investigators were not concerned with Meghan’s conduct, but rather the manner in which palace officials handled the HR complaint about her behavior.
Speaking on condition of anonymity, one palace official explained his take on the situation:
“Because of the confidentiality of the discussions we have not communicated the detailed recommendations,” he said.
“I think the objectives have been satisfied because lessons have been learned.”
The investigation was the result of a complaint from former Kensington Palace communications secretrary Jason Knauf, who did not mince words in his message to HR.
“I am very concerned that the Duchess was able to bully two PAs out of the household in the past year,”Knauf wrote.
“The Duchess seems intent on always having someone in her sights. She is bullying [unnamed employee] and seeking to undermine her confidence,” he continued.
“We have had report after report from people who have witnessed unacceptable behavior towards [unnamed employee].”
After a dramatic claim like that, the Duchess of Sussex certainly deserves some public vindication.
But according to royal experts, she shouldn’t hold her breath.
Journalist Katie Nicholl says that the results of the investigation will never be made public for the simple reason that the Queen “doesn’t want any more drama.”
“She just doesn’t want any more dirty linens aired in public,” Nicholl told Entertainment Tonight.
You almost have to admire the way that the royals keep coming up with creative new ways to let Harry and Meghan down!