Prince Harry and Meghan Markle shared many intimate and affectionate moments of PDA (public displays of affection) during the couple's visit to the Invictus Games this weekend.
The visit marked the Sussexes' first joint public visit to Europe since they stepped down as full-time working members of the royal family in 2020. The couple faced questions ahead of the trip over speculation as to whether or not they would stop in the U.K. to visit Harry's 95-year-old grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II. A spokesperson confirmed after the royals arrived in the Netherlands for the games that the pair did pay a brief visit to Britain for a meeting with the queen, Prince Charles and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall last week. This visit was made amid Harry's ongoing legal dispute with the U.K. Home Office regarding security.
The 2022 Invictus Games have been hosted in The Hague, Netherlands after two years of postponement, with Harry in attendance as the founding patron. The events have marked important milestones in the prince's relationship with his now wife Meghan after he invited her to attend the 2017 events in Toronto as one of the first public outings the pair made since news of their relationship broke.
Speaking in an interview with People given while in The Hague, Harry said: ""The Toronto [Invictus] Games were our first time out and about publicly in an official way. We were dating at the time, so it was a lot to take in, but fortunately, we were with the perfect community for that.
"Now, five years later, here we are in The Hague at the fifth Invictus Games, as parents of two, and living in the U.S. I had always wanted to share these incredible moments with someone special, and to have Meg by my side means everything."
Here, Newsweek takes a look at Harry and Meghan's very public displays of affection while visiting the 2022 Invictus Games together:
READY FOR ANYTHING
For their first engagement at the Invictus Games in The Hague, Harry and Meghan attended a reception for the friends and family of the event and its competitors. This was an important moment for the royal couple as it was their first public appearance together since the NAACP Image Awards in February, it also came off the back of negative reporting over Harry's decision not to attend the memorial service to his grandfather Prince Philip just weeks earlier.
As the couple stepped out into view of the assembled press and well-wishers Harry and Meghan appeared strong and united, holding hands and walking shoulder to shoulder.
AN OPENING CEREMONY KISS
The opening ceremony of the Invictus Games is always an important occasion with Harry traditionally giving a welcome address.
For the games in 2022, Meghan made a speech to the crowd paying an affectionate tribute to her husband.
"It is my distinguished honor to introduce someone that I think you'll all be very excited to hear from," she announced. "He has also spent many late nights and early mornings planning for these games to make them as perfect as possible for each of you."
"I could not love and respect him more and I know that all of you feel the same because he is your fellow veteran, having served two tours of duty in Afghanistan and 10 years of military service.
"He's the founder of the Invictus Games, and the father to our two little ones, Archie and Lili. Please welcome my incredible husband, Prince Harry, the Duke of Sussex."
Harry, visibly touched by the introduction, thanked his wife with a kiss to the delight of those in the stadium and to royal watchers around the world.
Harry has never shied away from being demonstratively affectionate towards Meghan and the kiss echoes one given by the prince to his then girlfriend at the 2017 Toronto games' closing ceremony—except this time it was on stage.
AFFECTIONATE EMBRACE AT RELAXED DRIVING EVENT
At a special Invictus Games driving event, hosted by sponsor Jaguar Land Rover, Harry and Meghan appeared happy and relaxed away from the formality of the official ceremonies and receptions.
As the couple watched events unfold, they showed an intimate display of affection with Meghan laughing at the prince and touching his arm. Finally Harry pulled his wife in for a warm embrace as the royals spoke to games participants.
A UNITED FRONT
On the second day of the events, Meghan's final day in attendance before returning home to the couple's two children, Archie, 2, and Lilibet, 10 months, the royals paid a visit to a number of competitors.
During the course of their day, Harry and Meghan visited the outdoor track arena to greet games champions and volunteers. The couple arrived hand in hand as they walked across the empty track towards the assembled crowd.
This display of affection was captured by a Netflix film crew who have shadowed the couple and wider games competitors for the documentary series Heart of Invictus. This series is the first output of Archewell Productions, an arm of the royals' Archewell foundation.
A COMFORTING GESTURE
Harry and Meghan attended a volleyball match on the second day of the Invictus Games over the weekend and were photographed happily chatting to each other as well as veterans and organizers seated around them.
In a touching sign of affection Meghan was photographed resting a hand on her husband's knee in a display that has been repeated many times throughout the course of their marriage. Harry appeared to return the gesture as he watched the match before the couple attended a special reception for the Invictus Games Foundation later in the evening.
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
James Crawford-Smith is a Newsweek Royal Reporter, based in London, U.K. His focus is reporting on the British royal family ... Read more
