Meghan Has Made Her Last Public Work Appearance Before Giving Birth
Meghan Markle is over seven months pregnant with her and Prince Harry's first child, but she hasn't stopped her royal duties just yet. After the Duchess of Sussex attended the Commonwealth Day services at Westminster Abbey with the royal family on Monday, fans began speculating whether the grand event marked the end of Meghan's public appearances before giving birth, thus starting her maternity leave. However, the answer is a little more complicated than that.
It may be a while before we see Meghan in public again, but she's not exactly taking a break from work. "Her public engagements have finished but she is not on maternity leave yet," a Palace aide confirms to BAZAAR.com.
"Meghan will continue working privately behind the scenes, taking meetings," the source added. "She has also been using this period to catch up with those involved in her patronage-related endeavors."
In fact, yesterday, she had a meeting at Kensington Palace with the National Theatre's artistic director Rufus Norris and executive director Lisa Burger. The National Theatre is one of Meghan's first royal patronages, which was announced this January. The position was previously held by the Queen.
As the Duke and Duchess of Sussex prepare for their baby, they're also getting ready to move out of Kensington Palace and into Frogmore Cottage in Windsor. However, they have not relocated yet, the source tells BAZAAR.
Kate Middleton stepped out of the spotlight at a similar time last year when she was pregnant with Prince Louis, her youngest child with Prince William. Her last public working appearance before giving birth was for the Commonwealth Games on March 22. She welcomed Louis a month later, on April 23.
Kate returned to public royal duties about six months later, on October 2. "It is traditional for new royal mums to take a six-month break from official engagements," royal biographer, Duncan Larcombe told BAZAAR last year. "The [royal] wedding doesn’t count because it was a 'family affair' but other than that, she will pick and choose her engagements."
Perhaps we'll see a similar pattern with Meghan this year.
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