Royal family
Years ago, a leaked email from palace aide Jason Knauf led to an internal investigation into alleged bullying by Meghan Markle. Knauf recently spoke about the experience.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle spent just under two years in the royal family before they stepped down for a new life in the United States. During that time, Meghan came under fire for a number of reasons, one of which involved a leaked email accusing the duchess of bullying certain staff members.
An internal probe was launched, but the findings were never made public. Meghan’s team called the situation a “smear campaign,” but now, the palace aide whose leaked email was at the center of it all is speaking out.
Former palace aide says the bullying drama was a ‘tough situation’
When Meghan and Harry began dating, it didn’t take the press long to dig into Meghan’s life. They found whatever they could to drum up headlines about Harry’s now-wife, and it led to plenty of drama between Meghan and the royal family. But in 2018, palace aide Jason Knauf sent an email to Prince William’s private secretary at the time, which suggested Meghan was bullying certain staff members. In an interview with Australia’s 60 Minutes, Knauf spoke out about the incident, revealing his thoughts on the coverage that followed the leak.
“I think it, it’s tough, but it’s probably quite good,” he said, according to Express. “You know, someone who has been helping other people through how to deal with the public eye. You probably had to take your own medicine sometime.”
He continued, “You can’t choose just to take the fun stuff in any job. And that applies to the Prince and Princess [of Wales] as well as everyone else working for them. So I wouldn’t change anything.”
Knauf says he wouldn’t have “sought” the outcome that came from the leaked email, but he “wouldn’t change anything” about the actions he took in sending it.
Meghan Markle and her team have always denied the allegations
Harry and Meghan never took well to the allegations, and the duchess and her team have always denied that anything of the sort occurred. “Let’s just call this what it is: A calculated smear campaign based on misleading and harmful misinformation,” one of the duchess’ spokespeople said at the time.
These days, Harry and Meghan have moved past the allegations and have left royal family life completely behind. Meghan hasn’t seen the royals in several years, and Harry has hardly visited his family since leaving. The two are raising their children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet, thousands of miles away from Harry’s relatives.
