“Just by existing, we were upsetting the dynamic of the hierarchy,” Meghan explained. Their decision to step down and pursue independence was met with criticism from the press and disappointment from within the family.

Their final departure in 2020, captured in their Netflix docuseries, included what Harry called their “freedom flight” to California with Meghan’s mother Doria Ragland and baby Archie. What followed was a reinvention: new careers in media, lucrative deals with Netflix and Spotify, and a life in Montecito with Archie and their daughter, Lilibet.

Six Years On: Success, Strain, and Speculation

From the outside, Harry and Meghan appear settled. Meghan has launched her lifestyle brand, American Riviera Orchard, while Harry remains involved with Invictus and other projects. Their Nigeria trip earlier this year even carried the air of a quasi-royal tour, though it was billed as private.

Yet experts say the fairytale has its cracks. Royal commentator Ingrid Seward told The Sun that while the Sussexes’ life in California looks picture-perfect, public perception has soured. “We loved them for a while, and then we didn’t much anymore,” she said, adding that the couple had “let the Queen down” and are now viewed with pity in Harry’s homeland.

Historian Gareth Russell suggested the Sussexes may be forming “an alternative royal family,” but warned that such a move could draw even more scrutiny to their commercial ventures and public appearances.

As royal expert Richard Fitzwilliams noted, the couple remain unpredictable: “They can always do the unexpected.”

Six years after their Windsor wedding, Harry and Meghan’s story is far from settled. They are financially independent, publicly active, and still deeply polarizing. Whether their path leads to reconciliation with the royals — or toward building a permanent alternative identity of their own — remains one of the monarchy’s most compelling open questions.