Sophie Wessex ‘relieved’ she no longer has to curtsy to Meghan Markle

A significant title upgrade has come as a huge 'relief' for a royal family member, who was facing an uncomfortable situation with the Duchess of Sussex. Photo / Netflix

The new Duchess of Edinburgh is understood to be “relieved” that her promotion in royal ranks means she no longer has to curtsy to Meghan Markle, amid reports the pair’s relationship has become strained.

Sophie, formerly known as the Countess of Wessex, was given the new title alongside her husband Prince Edward’s upgrade to Duke of Edinburgh.

Edward’s parents had long promised the position previously held by his late father, Prince Philip, would eventually go to him – and on his 59th birthday last week, King Charles finally made it official.

As a result, Sophie reportedly now no longer needs to curtsy to the Duchess of Sussex.

“Sophie is relieved. She no longer has to curtsy to someone in the family who has not only left royal duties, but has spent the past three years criticising the institution that Sophie works so hard to support,” a source close to the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh reportedly told the Daily Mail.

The royal women seen together at the Queen's funeral. Photo / Getty Images

According to the UK’s Mirror, the relationship between the two royal women has been difficult following reports Meghan chose not to accept Sophie’s offer to help mentor her through life in the monarchy.

It comes just months after Meghan was criticised for appearing to mock the “curtsy” protocol in episode two of the Netflix docuseries Harry & Meghan.

“My grandmother was the first senior member of the family that Meghan met,” Harry explained.

“She had no idea what it all consisted of, so it was a bit of a shock to the system for her.”

“It was surreal,” Meghan said.

“There wasn’t some big moment of like, ‘And now you’re gonna meet my grandmother.’ I didn’t know I was gonna meet her until moments before.

“We were in the car, and we were going to the Royal Lodge for lunch, and [Harry] was like, ‘Oh, my grandmother’s here. She’s gonna be there after church.

Meghan’s exaggerated curtsy was seen by many as a sign of disrespect towards the late Queen. Photo / Netflix

“And I remember we were in the car and driving up, and he said, ‘You know how to curtsy, right?’ And I just thought it was a joke.”

Harry added: “How do you explain that to people? How do you explain that you bow to your grandmother and that you will need to curtsy? Especially to an American. Like, that’s weird.”

Meghan said she quickly realised “this is a big deal” and that it made her feel like she was living in “medieval times”.

“I curtsied as though I was like,” she explained, demonstrating a very exaggerated and drawn-out bow that many viewers called out as disrespectful, before giggling and recalling saying: “Pleasure to meet you, Your Majesty.”