Prince Harry & Meghan Markle's Critics Think They Will Recruit Eugenie for ‘Quasi Royal’ Tours

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s rumored European real estate move has sent their critics into a tailspin. The stateside couple has reportedly bought a vacation home in Portugal near close royal family member Princess Eugenie and her husband, Jack Brooksbank — and that’s where the real fear lies for some of the naysayers.

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Eugenie and Brooksbank split their time between Portugal and the U.K. because he is employed by the CostaTerra Golf and Ocean Club in Melides, a coastal town south of Lisbon. The Daily Mail seems to think that the Sussexes will draw their cousin and cousin-in-law into their “quasi-royal” tours that have recently taken them to Nigeria and Colombia. The “rival royals” worry appears to be a real thing at the palace even though Harry and Meghan have been clear that their mission is about spreading the word about the Invictus Games and Archewell Foundation.

The Daily Mail can’t help but criticize every move the couple makes, but Tina Brown, author of The Palace Papers: Inside the House of Windsor–the Truth and the Turmoil , praised the duo for their global appeal. “After all of the trashing of Harry this week… trying to blame him [for the rift],” she explained to the BBC in May. “When I saw him and Meghan in Nigeria, I had a nostalgia. I felt this is what it could have been. These two, who are enormously appealing to the public and who are very good at it, were out there in Nigeria sort of looking really attractive and being appealing people.”

Brown described it as a “ Harry-shaped hole in the monarchy, ” but it is doubtful that Eugenie and Brooksbank would ever defy King Charles III by joining the ranks of Harry and Meghan. Prince Andrew’s youngest daughter has struck a healthy balance in understanding her place in the royal family and maintaining close ties to her beloved cousin. She’s the one who is reportedly trying to bridge the gap between Harry and his father.

“Eugenie is a kind and peaceful soul, she hates all this tension and goes out of her way to play up positives wherever possible,” a source told In Touch Weekly in September. “That includes delicately reminding people at the top of the Firm how hard Harry and Meghan work for charity, bringing up anecdotes and photos from the good times pre-Megxit, and sticking up for her dad any chance she gets, too,” the insider added.

The Sussexes’ second home in Europe opens up an opportunity to heal the rift and for Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet to get to know Harry’s side of the family. The couple is going to continue their mission to spread the word about the Invictus Games and their philanthropic endeavors, but there is no worry about them recruiting Eugenie to their ranks. It’s an absurd idea, but the move does offer a step toward ending the family feud once and for all.

Before you go, click here to see more of Meghan Markle & Prince Harry’s milestones since leaving the royal family.