Prince William and Kate Middleton break social media silence after release of Meghan Markle and Prince Harry’s Christmas card

Several royal experts this week compared Harry and Meghan’s controversial festive release to cards previously handed out by the Wales’

Following the online upheaval that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s 2024 Christmas card caused earlier this week, followers of the royal foursome were left wondering about Prince William and Kate Middleton’s take on the matter.

And today – less that two days after the Sussex’s festive tribute was released – the Wales’ have broken their silence.

If you’re out of the loop with the monarchy’s latest drama, worry not. We’re here to fill you in…

Followers of the story have been left wondering what the Wales’ think (Chris Jackson/Getty Images)

On Wednesday, Harry and Meghan continued their tradition of sending out an ‘official’ Christmas card, which was sent via email to all followers of and subscribers to their joint charity, the Archewell Foundation.

The move itself wasn’t especially surprising – after all, since tying the knot in 2018, the couple has continued to send out annual seasonal wishes, with their cards often including a special snap from the year gone by.

In 2020, they shared their first Christmas card photo alongside son Archie, with the youngster seen standing with his parents outside of a playhouse donned with festive wreaths.

A year later, one of the couple holding their daughter (then-baby) Lilibet in the air was released.

The following two years, the couple opted not to include their children in the Christmas card, with 2022’s and 2023’s simply consisting of a photo of Meghan and Harry – with the move supposedly prompted by security concerns.

This year, however, the Sussexes chose to do things a little bit differently by sending their 2024 card in the form of a collage, made up of images from their year together.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s 2024 Christmas card (Archewell Foundation)

Several of the snaps were taken during their humanitarian endeavours overseas – including some from their August trip to Colombia – whilst one included the couple with their children, who were seen from behind running up to their parents.

The festive gesture also included a message, which read: “On behalf of the office of Prince Harry and Meghan, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, we wish you a very happy holiday season, and a joyful new year.”

As we say, however, the layout of the card subsequently caused quite the stir online, with one royal expert even accusing the couple of sensationally breaking royal protocol.

Grant Harrold – who previously served in Buckingham Palace as the official butler to Harry’s father, King Charles III – told Tyla on behalf of Slingo yesterday: “A traditional royal Christmas card we’ve seen from the King or the Princess of Wales is normally just a photograph.

“Since I’ve been working with the Royal family, it’s always been quite simple with one photograph. Harry and Meghan’s card this year is very different. It’s more of a montage.”

Usually, William and Kate wait until the 25th to release their ‘royal Christmas portraits’, each one of which has also been a single image either with – or of – their three children, George, Charlotte and Louis.

The Wales’ simply re-shared a video of Porter’s performance (Instagram/@gregoryportermusic/@princeandprincessofwales)

Concluding his viewers on Harry and Meghan’s card, however, Grant added: “[This] isn’t the correct thing to do. It’s not very Royal.”

Following the blatant comparison to the Wales’, followers of the controversy have had questions about William and Kate’s stance.

And today, the future King and Queen – who the tabloid press claim have been ‘at war’ with the Sussexes since their resignation from royal duties and departure from the UK in 2020 – broke their silence on the matter.

In-keeping with royal practice, however, the pair chose not to speak about the card chaos directly, and in fact, they seem to have brushed straight over it, simply sharing an unrelated snap on Twitter (or X).

The official account of Kensington Palace – the Wales’ royal residence – have since shared a video of soul musician Gregory Porter performing at the annual carol concert organised by Kate, which took place in Westminster Abbey earlier this month.

The artist had shared the original clip, captioning it, ‘It was an honor to perform at The Princess of Wales’ 2024 Together at Christmas carol service. It was such a special evening. Thank you for having me @KensingtonRoyal’, with the couple retweeting it.

William and Kate also shared the same video on their professional Instagram account.

We wonder if they’ll ever really say what they want to about the carnage-causing Christmas card…

Featured Image Credit: Mark Cuthbert/UK Press via Getty Images/Archewell Foundation