Meghan and Harry at a recent event (Image: Getty )

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Prince Harry and Meghan Markle reportedly felt they had been subject to a “snub” from the late Queen Elizabeth II during one of her annual Christmas addresses. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex sensationally quit their royal duties in January 2020, after one particular moment reportedly was the “final straw” for them just weeks earlier.

In 2019, Harry and Meghan, with seven-month-old Prince Archie in tow, spent the festive period in Canada with Meghan’s mother Doria Ragland and they were allegedly “tipped over the edge” during the late Queen Elizabeth’s Christmas broadcast. As the monarch addressed viewers, family portraits were clearly visible on her desk, however, one was missing as there was no picture of Meghan and Harry with their then-newborn son.

The Mirror reports, in the book Finding Freedom, authors Omid Scobie and Carolyn Durand claimed the Sussexes believed the Royal Family were “conspiring against them” with the move, as they said the couple felt they had “long been sidelined by the institution and were not a fundamental part of its future”.

They wrote: “One didn’t have to look further than the family photos displayed during the Queen’s Speech on Christmas Day. In the Green Drawing Room at Buckingham Palace, where the Queen delivered her address, viewers glimpsed photos of the [Waleses] and their children, Charles and Camilla, Prince Philip, and a black-and-white image of George VI.

“Noticeably absent was a photo of Harry, Meghan, and their new baby, Archie.” The authors explained the Palace’s reasoning behind the snub, as royal sources insisted the photos were chosen to represent the “direct line of succession”. However, Omid and Carolyn said Harry and Meghan felt it was “yet another sign that they needed to consider their own path.”

During the 2019 Christmas period, the royal couple missed the Queen’s pre-Christmas lunch at Buckingham Palace and were not present for the traditional royal family gathering at the monarch’s private Sandringham estate on Christmas Day.