All The Rare Times Royals Got Caught Crying In Public
Royals are often expected to remain composed in public — but, from funerals to terror attacks to birthday parties, some occasions are so emotional that they just can't help but shed a tear.
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00:00Royals are often expected to remain composed and public, but from funerals to terror attacks
00:06to birthday parties, some occasions are so emotional that they just can't help but shed
00:11a tear.
00:12Meghan Markle's strained circumstances with the British royal family didn't seem to affect
00:16her relationship with Queen Elizabeth II, to whom she remained committed to the end.
00:21Meghan flew down to Britain for her funeral in 2022, mourning the loss at par with the
00:25rest of the royal family.
00:27She wore an all-black ensemble and a somber expression on her face, and she wasn't afraid
00:31to shed a tear or two, either.
00:33Talking to Variety about processing this grief, Meghan said,
00:36"...I've reflected on that first official engagement that I had with her, how special
00:40that felt.
00:41I feel fortunate, and I continue to be proud to have had a nice warmth with the matriarch
00:45of the family."
00:46When Meghan joined the firm in 2018, royal commentators generally praised the rapport
00:51she seemed to have built with the queen.
00:53Rumors soon emerged about the status of their relationship, however, after Meghan and Prince
00:57Harry's relocation to the United States snowballed into a storm of contentious interviews and
01:03shocking allegations.
01:04"...They were willing to lie to protect other members of the family, but they weren't willing
01:10to tell the truth to protect me and my husband."
01:13Through every bombshell and public spat, Meghan and Harry made a point of emphasizing that
01:17they were still close to the queen.
01:19That confession didn't deter critics from scrutinizing Meghan's tears at Elizabeth's
01:23funeral, however.
01:25According to The Mirror, a viral theory on social media claimed that Meghan had put her
01:29acting chops to use by faking her grief.
01:33It's far from unusual to see a bride shed a tear or two on her wedding day.
01:37What's rarer is seeing her cry so much that people actually become concerned for her.
01:41That's pretty much how Princess Charlene's tears were interpreted back in 2011, when
01:46she tied the knot with Prince Albert II of Monaco.
01:49Images from their wedding splashed across the global press, many of them showing Charlene's
01:53cheeks glistening with tears as she kept a handkerchief handy.
01:56The Guardian reported that the prince begged in a whisper to stop his bride from crying,
02:01while ABC News highlighted how Charlene supposedly flinched when Albert asked her for a kiss.
02:05Though she later explained away her tears as being customary for a bride, it was impossible
02:10to ignore the fact that Charlene had tried to escape Monaco thrice in the run-up to her
02:15wedding.
02:16This was thought to be related to allegations of infidelity on Albert's part.
02:19At the time, the Playboy prince was said to have fathered a third love child, in addition
02:23to the two he already had out of wedlock, and he even reportedly took DNA tests at Charlene's
02:28behest.
02:29While Charlene's attempts to bolt were intercepted by Monaco each time, they sparked a flurry
02:34of enduring speculation over her relationship with Albert.
02:37Even after over a decade of marriage, Charlene is rarely seen wearing her wedding ring in
02:42public.
02:43In the third season of The Crown, Queen Elizabeth is shown struggling to cry over the 1966 Aberfan
02:49disaster.
02:50"'Put on a show.'
02:52The Crown doesn't do that."
02:53However, the late monarch was photographed getting teary-eyed on more than one occasion
02:57during her reign.
02:58One such instance dates back to 2002, when she attended the Remembrance Day service at
03:02Westminster Abbey in honor of military martyrs.
03:05The press there captured the usually stoic-faced queen in a somber state, dressed in all black
03:11with tears running down her face.
03:13This was the first time she had attended the annual holiday without her mother Queen Elizabeth,
03:17the queen mother, who died earlier that same year in March.
03:20The widely popular image has been falsely credited to other solemn events over the years,
03:26including Prince Philip's death in 2021, an incident that nevertheless inspired more public
03:31emotions from Elizabeth.
03:32The late queen's apparent lack of emotional expression remained a key feature of her life
03:36as a public figure, though, something royal experts attribute to her upbringing and sense
03:40of propriety as the head of state.
03:43Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's relationship with the British royals grew ever more fraught
03:47when Harry and Meghan was released in 2022.
03:50This Netflix documentary gave audiences a glimpse into the full extent of their troubles,
03:55with candid, first-person accounts from the couple that involved many tears.
03:59More than once, Meghan broke down on camera while talking about her time in Britain, and
04:03the backlash that came her way after the pair stepped down from their royal duties.
04:07It's not just a tabloid.
04:09It's not just some story.
04:13You are making me scared."
04:15One episode also featured a clip of the couple attending a guided meditation session that
04:20left Meghan overwhelmed.
04:21While the series received massive numbers, pulling in a record debut viewership of 81.6
04:26million hours for Netflix, reviews were mixed.
04:30The documentary was the first of several productions Netflix was slated to work on with the Sussexes.
04:35Today, however, the future of their $100 million deal stands on rocky ground.
04:39In 2024, royal insider Richard Fitzwilliams told the Daily Mail that,
04:44"...now that the crown has come to an end, Netflix has little interest in producing content
04:48on the royals."
04:50King Frederick X let his emotions flow freely during his swearing-in ceremony as the monarch
04:55of Denmark in 2024.
04:57As thousands flooded the streets outside Christianborg Palace to witness the historic moment, the
05:03royal premier appeared visibly overwhelmed, and between smiles and waves could be seen
05:07wiping away tears.
05:09These sentiments were all but expected, given that Frederick took over from his mother,
05:13Queen Margrethe II, who, in a surprising turn of events, stepped down from the throne after
05:18reigning for 52 years.
05:20This marked the first such abdication in nearly 900 years, supposedly brought on by a back
05:24surgery Margrethe underwent in 2023.
05:27In his first official address as king, Frederick said,
05:30"...my hope is to become a unifying king of tomorrow.
05:33It is a task I have approached all my life."
05:35Given how rare it is to see a male sovereign become emotional in public, Frederick's reaction
05:39to the ascension was widely covered in the press, and contrasted with the stoicism of
05:43King Charles III's coronation.
05:46The Guardian reported that the formal handover was also a highly emotional affair behind
05:50closed doors, with Margrethe tearing up while signing her abdication.
05:54She had served as Denmark's longest-reigning and most popular monarch, leading to speculation
05:59over whether there might have been another reason behind her premature resignation.
06:03There were even some suggestions that she handed down the crown as a redemptive act
06:07for Frederick, who had been accused of cheating on his wife.
06:11The Stockholm terror attack marked a tragic moment for Sweden, leaving the whole country
06:15in grief.
06:16Crown Princess Victoria led the mass mourning in 2017 with a visit to the site of the attack,
06:22where a hijacked truck had driven into crowds on the street, killing five people and injuring
06:26many others.
06:27Choked with emotion, Victoria said,
06:29"...I feel an enormous sorrow and emptiness."
06:32Her tears resurfaced when she attended a memorial concert honoring attack victims a year after
06:37the tragedy.
06:38Victoria, who will succeed her father, King Karl XVI Gustaf, has emerged as a popular
06:44royal, not just in her home country, but across Europe.
06:47The striking candor with which she has spoken publicly about her experiences with anorexia
06:52and dyslexia is largely uncharacteristic of a royal, and has been met with considerable
06:57admiration.
06:58Speaking to public broadcaster SVT, she revealed,
07:01"...the performance anxiety I had is still there.
07:03I've been given different kinds of tools and learned how to manage it."
07:07Prince Archie's birth in 2019 was significant for more reasons than one.
07:12For starters, Buckingham Palace had been thoroughly rattled in the run-up to it, amid allegations
07:16of racism and mental health neglect brought up during Meghan Markle and Prince Harry's
07:21infamous interview with Oprah Winfrey.
07:23It also signaled the bittersweet arrival of a scion with an uncertain future in the family,
07:28given his parents' decision to step away from the royal family.
07:31And of course, Meghan and Harry themselves found themselves overwhelmed by the birth
07:35of their first child, after everything that had transpired.
07:38The world caught a glimpse of the emotions involved in Archie's birth during a vulnerable
07:42moment at the WellChild Awards in 2019.
07:44Harry only got so far before his emotions got the better of him, and he had to pause
07:57to regain his composure.
07:59He went on to recount the emotions he and Meghan went through as expectant parents,
08:03and how the experience of parenthood had moved him.
08:06Harry and Meghan, who also welcomed Princess Lilibet in 2021, are bringing up their children
08:11in the laid-back locales of California.
08:13Away from the prying eyes of the British press, and the troubles of royal life.
08:18It's an emotional moment for any parent to see their child come of age.
08:22No matter how blue-blooded they may be, royals are still human.
08:25And Queen Matilda didn't hold back her tears at the official ceremony celebrating her daughter
08:30Crown Princess Elizabeth's 18th birthday.
08:33This event didn't just mark her transition into adulthood, but also a key milestone in
08:37her inheritance of the Belgian throne, which she could now occupy without a regent.
08:41The nationally broadcast event in 2019 was grand, to put it mildly, with the who's-who
08:46of Belgian royalty, politics, and entertainment in attendance.
08:50Matilda was seen getting misty-eyed among the sea of dignitaries inside the royal palace,
08:55presumably more as a mother than a queen watching a future sovereign take the stage.
08:59In her first address, Elizabeth commemorated her parents, who sat in the audience holding
09:03hands.
09:04She said,
09:05"...thanks, Mama, for your presence and your listening ear.
09:07Thanks, Dad, for your trust.
09:08I know I can always count on you."
09:11Elizabeth's ascension to the throne will be a landmark moment for Belgium, as she will
09:15be the country's first-ever monarch.
09:18Princess Diana wasn't called the People's Princess for nothing.
09:21She was famous and beloved for her ability to empathize and engage deeply with humanitarian
09:26issues.
09:27"...HIV does not make people dangerous to know.
09:30So you can shake their hands and give them a hug.
09:33Heaven knows they need it."
09:35But her visit to Southport back in 1992 captured public attention for very different reasons.
09:40The Princess of Wales was in the Merseyside town for the opening of Queen's Court Hospice
09:44when she experienced a public breakdown.
09:47Local paper The Southport Visitor detailed Diana's interactions with people outside the
09:51hospice before her eyes filled with tears, forcing her to jump into a waiting car.
09:56You might think that the somber setting of a palliative center might have moved the princess
10:01to tears, but the press at the time guessed otherwise.
10:04The charity opening had marked Diana's first official engagement after rumors of her impending
10:09separation from then-Prince Charles had begun circulating.
10:12Meanwhile, excerpts from the biography Diana, Her True Story were appearing in the media
10:16pre-release, which led to wide speculation about her private life.
10:20In Southport, photographers scrambled to get the so-called Diana crying shot, which was
10:24reckoned to be evidence of the princess' fragile emotional state.
10:29Prince Philip's death in 2021 marked an emotional moment for followers of the British royals.
10:34Inside the walls of Buckingham Palace, the loss was felt more personally.
10:39Princess Beatrice, in particular, was overcome with emotion at the memorial service held
10:42for the Duke of Edinburgh at Westminster Abbey, even holding her hymn sheet up to cover her
10:48sobs.
10:49Beatrice's emotions were particularly noticeable given her position near other key royals,
10:53such as Queen Elizabeth and Prince William.
10:55This was not the first time Beatrice had become overwhelmed with regard to her grandfather.
11:00Appearing on the 2016 ITV documentary Our Queen at 90, she gushed profusely about Philip,
11:06saying,
11:07When I talk about my grandfather, I really get quite emotional.
11:09I'm very lucky there have been so many times where I have been able to share magical moments
11:13with my grandfather."
11:15One of these moments had been her wedding to Edoardo Mapelli-Mozzi in 2020.
11:19A picture from the private ceremony, among the only few to be made public, showed Philip
11:24and Elizabeth looking lovingly at the happy couple outside the chapel.
11:27It marked the last time the royal pair saw any of their grandchildren get married.