Prince Philip 'walked away' from Meghan Markle and Harry after 'shock of Megxit'

A royal biographer has claimed that Prince Philip "walked away" from the Duke and Duchess of Sussex after the "shock of Megxit".

Earlier this year Meghan Markle and Prince Harry shocked the world when they announced they would be "stepping back" as senior royals.

Ingrid Seward, author of a new biography Prince Philip Revealed, has claimed the Duke of Edinburgh was "unable to comprehend" why his grandson would want to leave the family.

She said his advice to the young couple was ignored and now he has "stepped back" from the situation.

According to the new book, Prince Philip “quite liked” Meghan but now compares her to Wallis Simpson, who triggered the abdication crisis after marrying King Edward VIII in 1937.

Ms Seward told Vanity Fair: "His grandson’s behaviour is completely alien to him so not unnaturally the relationship has suffered.

"Philip’s way is that he says his bit, and then steps back from the situation because he doesn’t like to interfere.

"It was up to Harry and Meghan to listen but they didn’t and Philip has always been very protective of the Queen so if anyone upsets her, they upset him too.

"His mantra is the monarchy comes first, second, and third."

She also claimed that the 99-year-old Duke couldn't understand why Meghan wasn't able to give up her acting career and support Harry.

While speaking to Sky News, Ms Seward said: "I think he’s very, very disappointed because I think he feels he gave up his naval career in order to stand by the Queen and help the monarchy.

“And why can’t Meghan just give up her acting career, support her husband and support the monarchy?

“As he used to say to Diann, this is not a popularity contest, this is all of us working together.

“He just cannot understand why she couldn’t support Harry and help him rather than wanting to have her voice.”

Ms Seward added that Philip did not want to be part of the talks surrounding Harry and Meghan's future outside of the monarchy, which took place at the Sandringham Estate in Norfolk in January.

Since then Meghan and Harry have moved to Los Angeles with their son Archie and have recently set up a new website for their charity.

Ms Seward has written more than twelve books on the royal family, and spoke to 'friends, aides and sources' close to the Duke for her latest biography.

The book states: "The son of Greek and Danish royalty, consort to the queen, and the grandfather of Princes Harry and William, Prince Philip has been at the heart of the royal family for decades—yet he remains an enigma to many.

"Now, Ingrid Seward, the editor-in-chief of Majesty magazine, brings her decades of experience covering the royal family to this fascinating and insightful biography of Queen Elizabeth II’s husband, and father, grandfather, and great-grandfather of the next three kings of England.

"From his early childhood in Paris among aristocrats and his mother’s battle with schizophrenia to his distinctive military service during World War II and marriage to Elizabeth in 1947, Seward chronicles Philip’s life and reveals his many faces—as a father, a philanthropist, a philanderer, and a statesman.

"Though it would take years for Philip to find his place in a royal court that initially distrusted him, he remains one of the most complex, powerful, yet confounding members of Britain’s royal family."