Meghan Markle has come under fire over her decision to dedicate her guest-edited issue of Vogue magazine to 15 female trailblazers. Royal commentators have suggested the decision put the Duchess of Sussex too close to entering the political sphere and have urged her to take a step back. Author Harry Mount suggested the young royal could avoid further backlash by learning a key lesson Queen Elizabeth II has been mastering since she first took on the thone in 1952.

Speaking to Sky News, Mr Mount said: “I think she should follow the example of her grandmother-in-law and stick to public speeches, to charity work. She is extremely good at that, I’m an admirer of hers, but she must be very careful about airing her thoughts too much.

“The great 19th-century constitutional journalist Walter Bagehot said about the monarchy, ‘its mystery is its life, don’t let daylight in upon magic’ – if you hear too much about what she thinks, she loses her mystery.

“One of the great things about the Queen is that in 67 years on the throne she’s never given an interview. We don’t know what she thinks so she gets that grandeur and that mystery.”

Mr Mount claimed the Duchess of Sussex should focus her efforts on promoting the causes she most cares about with public speeches rather than with her collaboration with prominent magazines.

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It’s not the sort of things royals should be doing

Harry Mount

He continued: “It’s not the sort of things royals should be doing. I’m a fan of Meghan’s, I think she’s a very good speechmaker – she made a very good speech to the UN.

“But it’s strange to be accelerated to the position of a magazine editor just like that. I think you end up being accelerated to a position that you’re not quite up to.”

Meghan Markle chose to feature on the cover of the guest-edited issue women she considers to be playing an important role in helping to change the world – as she chose to title the cover “forces for change.”

Among the women featured in the September issue include teenage environmental activist Greta Thunberg, former First Lady Michelle Obama and New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern. 

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However the Duchess’ decision to collaborate with Vogue also won support after the magazine revealed the royal had chosen not to be part of the cover.

The Independent’s lifestyle editor Harriet Hall praised the Duchess for snubbing the prominent spot for herself, focusing the public’s attention on the 15 women she had picked.

Mr Hall said: “She’s saying, ‘I’m not the focus here but these are the women that should be.

“You could say she is out there trying to get attention but she’s actually trying to do what is expected of royals, which is charity, philanthropy, and those are the things that she is promoting in this issue.”

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Meghan Markle was not the first member of the Royal Family to work with the publication, as sister-in-law Kate Middleton appeared on the cover to mark Vogue’s 100th anniversary after Princess Diana featured as a cover girl four times. 

Appearing in a 10-page shoot, Kate opted for a casual, country image to reflect her love of the countryside.

Former Vogue editor-in-chief Alexandra Shulman said at the time: “It’s a huge honour and incredibly exciting for us to have HRH The Duchess of Cambridge featuring on the cover of British Vogue and as part of our centenary issue.

“For me personally it has been a wonderful experience to have had the opportunity to work with her on this, and I am immensely proud of what we have produced.

Princess Anne, too, appeared on the cover for the UK version of Vogue for the September issue in 1971. She collaborated with the magazine twice more in May 1973 and November 1973.

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