The Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s defunct Instagram account has dropped to 11.1 million followers following their retreat from the limelight.
Prince Harry, 35, and Meghan Markle, 38, performed their final duties in March before stepping down as senior royals to focus on their own charities and build a more private life in LA – losing 200,000 followers as they are no longer able to post from their account.
The couple were forced to drop the Sussex Royal branding as part of their release from The Firm, starting an Archewell Foundation instead, and are thought to be waiting until after the pandemic to announce any further details on their charity or any new social media accounts they may be launching.
The pair are currently residing in actor Tyler Perry’s Hollywood mansion with their 1-year-old son Archie, were they are keeping a low profile amid ongoing charity work.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s defunct Instagram account has dropped to 11.1 million followers following their retreat from the limelight (seen in November at the Royal Albert Hall)
Prince Harry, 35, and Meghan Markle, 38, performed their final duties in March before stepping down as senior royals to focus on their own charities, and building a more private life in LA – and now have 200k less followers as they have been forced to stop posting
At the end of March the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge hit 11.4 million followers on Instagram, just beating the Sussexes by 100,000 followers.
Prince William, 37, and Kate Middleton, 38, who run the Kensington Palace Royal account only overtook Harry and Meghan ,who ran Sussex Royal, in recent months, despite being on the social network considerably longer.
The Sussexes had seen their following skyrocket since announcing their retreat from the public eye in January, but were overtaken by the Cambridges when they begun to post less amid their new life – initially started in Canada.
The Cambridges now boast 11.8 million followers, as the royal family continue their new ‘scaled back’ model of The Firm.
Prince Harry, 35, and Meghan Markle, 38, performed their final duties in March before stepping down as senior royals to focus on their own charities, and building a more private life in LA – losing 200,000 followers as they are no longer to post from their account (seen in November 2017
At the end of March the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge hit 11.4 million followers on Instagram , just beating the Sussexes by 100,000 followers
Prince William, 37, and Kate Middleton, 38, who run the Kensington Palace Royal account only overtook Harry and Meghan ,who ran Sussex Royal, in recent months, despite being on the social network considerably longer
The Sussexes experienced a surge in followers after their final week of royal duties, which saw them attend the Endeavour Awards, the Mountbatten Festival of Music and Commonwealth Day Service.
Meghan and Harry were also seen attending church service with the Queen, and visiting The National Theatre and Robert Clack Upper School in Dagenham.
The couple apparently bid a tearful farewell to their staff during an intimate dinner, and Meghan has returned to Canada to be with baby Archie.
The Sussexes, who currently boast 11.3 million followers, initially experienced a surge in followers after their final week of royal duties
The Sussexes had seen their following skyrocket since announcing their retreat from the public eye in January, but were overtaken by the Cambridges as they begun to post less amid their new life in Canada
A look at their respective Instagram accounts shows that while Kate and William have shared 2,039 posts, Harry and Meghan only posted 215 times since last April.
The Kensington Royal account gets an average of 300,000 likes for their posts, with statement posts including Kate Middleton’s birthday racking up 1.2 million likes.
Meanwhile Sussex Royal got a similar average, but their post announcing they would be stepping down garnered almost 2 million likes from supportive fans.
While William and Kate’s account follows just under 100 people, Harry and Meghan used to follow new accounts each month to highlight charitable causes – now following just three accounts which promote positive news.
In January night the Duke of Sussex has said he is ‘taking a leap of faith’ in stepping back from his life as a member of the royal family, but ‘there really was no other option’
Prince Harry , 35, and Meghan Markle , 38, who run Sussex Royal, saw their following skyrocket since announcing their retreat from the public eye in January
This is despite the Cambridges’ account Kensington Royal being around for much longer, while the Sussexes only started their account last April. They stood at 11m in January
In January, the Duke of Sussex said he is ‘taking a leap of faith’ in stepping back from his life as a member of the royal family, but ‘there really was no other option’.
Harry gave an emotional speech, where he told the ‘truth’ about leaving royal duties behind in a bid for a ‘more peaceful life’ for his family.
From the spring, the duke and duchess will stop using HRH, spend the majority of their time living in Canada, and pay back the taxpayers’ money spent renovating their Frogmore home.
In a speech at a private event for his charity Sentebale on Sunday night, Harry told invited guests: ‘What I want to make clear is we’re not walking away, and we certainly aren’t walking away from you.
‘Our hope was to continue serving the Queen, the Commonwealth, and my military associations, but without public funding. Unfortunately, that wasn’t possible.
‘I’ve accepted this, knowing that it doesn’t change who I am or how committed I am.
‘But I hope that helps you understand what it had to come to, that I would step my family back from all I have ever known, to take a step forward into what I hope can be a more peaceful life.’
In January the duke that said from the spring, the duke and duchess will stop using HRH, spend the majority of their time living in Canada (seen in Vancouver)