Kate Middleton 'to pay price' of Prince Harry, Meghan Markle's royal exit: opinion

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle leaving their royal duties and Prince Andrew's forced exit means "The Firm" has been stretched thin. This allegedly puts pressure on the younger working royals to do most of the work, especially for Kate Middleton as she has to uphold the royal brand.

Royal commentator Daniela Elser talked about the consequences of Megxit in her piece on News.com.au. She said the Duke and Duchess of Sussex's "convulsive exit" has left the Princess of Wales affected the most.

She said the mum-of-three "will end up paying the price for much of this tumult and change." She wrote, "I know the woman never steps out in public without the broadest of smiles and the most perfectly coiffured hair."

But the pressure put on Kate Middleton has reportedly "ratcheted up considerably" since Prince Harry and Meghan Markle left their royal duties. Elser said that in a "practical sense" the "responsibility of keeping the royal show on the road will basically fall" on the Princess of Wales.

She explained, "The loss of the Sussexes from the royal fold dealt the royal family not only a serious reputational blow but a hands-on one too."

Elser claimed that Prince William and Kate Middleton will eventually end up shouldering most of the royal workload because they are still in their 40s, while King Charles III and Camilla are over 70. Prince Edward and Sophie are in their 50s.

She said that on top of their work, the Princess of Wales "will have to do a disproportionate amount of the heavy lifting when it comes to upholding the royal brand." She said the brand "has obviously taken more than a few blows in recent years, the biggest and most damaging of which is the accusation of institutional racism" coming from Prince Harry and Meghan Markle.

Elser said that the "eternally popular" Kate Middleton may just be "the royal family's greatest and maybe only hope" in upholding the royal brand and thus, securing the public's support for the continuity of the monarchy. She concluded, "The halo effect of her in the monarchy's midst is the palace's biggest asset as they stare down a very dicey, not-at-all guaranteed future."