Meghan Markle and Prince Harry left the Royal Family four years ago before moving to Montecito, California, and now the Duke of Sussex has reflected on their move

Prince Harry has reflected on his decision to move to America as he said he and Meghan Markle left the UK “in fear for their sanity”.

The couple stepped down from the Royal Family back in 2020 before creating a new life for themselves in Montecito, California. They’ve since opened up about life behind Palace walls and admitted it wasn’t always easy.

In his debut memoir Spare, the Duke of Sussex reflected on their move to America and revealed why they felt they had to go. Writing about a visit to Frogmore Cottage, he said: “How beautiful it all is, I thought. And also how sad.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle left the Royal Family four years ago ( 
Image:
Getty Images)
“Once upon a time, this was going to be my forever home. Instead it had proved to be just another brief stop.” Harry had returned to Frogmore Cottage after Prince Philip’s funeral.

He added: “When my wife and I fled this place, in fear for our sanity and physical safety, I wasn’t sure when I’d ever come back. That was January 2020. Now, fifteen months later, here I was, days after waking to thirty-two missed calls and then one short, heart-racing talk with Granny: Harry… Grandpa s gone.”

Harry has since made a number of return visits to the UK. Most recently, he visited London to take part in various engagements related to the Invictus Games

He wrote about the decision in Spare ( 
Image:
Vincenzo Izzo/REX/Shutterstock)
However, Meghan decided not to join her husband. The Duchess of Sussex has made very few return trips to the UK since stepping down from the Royal Family.

Her last return trip was in 2022 for the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee. The Sussexes brought their two children – Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet – over for the special occasion.

Author Omid Scobie has previously written about Meghan’s decision not to come back to the UK. In his book Endgame, Omid said Meghan “never wants to set foot again in England.” He claimed she didn’t want to “dive back into the soap opera of the court”