Meghan Markle may be a part of the royal family now, but she’s not settling into their rules without question.
Markle has already proved herself to be a royal unlike any other, at least clothing-wise, with her decisions to sometimes eschew cardigans and wear a messy bun at her wedding. But her latest quietly subversive sartorial choice — the outfit she wore to Queen Elizabeth II's Trooping the Colour official birthday parade — may secretly be the riskiest of them all.
At first, the outfit may not seem all that noteworthy — after all, that Markle looking fantastic at a public event is not exactly news. But, according to The Sun, her Carolina Herrera dress is in direct violation of royal protocol, which dictates that women should not wear off-the-shoulder or other “revealing” styles. So, with this dress, Markle is proving that she’s still setting many of her own rules, despite the royal family’s notoriously strict regulations.
Another way that Markle set herself apart from other royals is by riding in her carriage with Prince Harry, because Kate Middleton usually rides in a carriage with Camilla Parker Bowles. But that’s actually due more to a title technicality than anything else. According to Harper’s Bazaar, Prince Charles and Prince William are both royal colonels, which means that they ride horseback beside the Queen during the parade. Prince Harry is not a royal colonel, so he’s available to ride with Markle.
Many people pointed out the noticeable differences between Markle’s outfit and Middleton’s first Trooping the Colour outfit, which, according to Harper’s Bazaar, was a white double-breasted suit by Alexander McQueen. This indicates that Middleton is bound by certain royal rules that Markle doesn’t have to play by — or, perhaps, has consciously opted out of. Whether or not Middleton will take a leaf from Markle’s book (or if Markle will takes one from hers) remains to be seen, but either choice could help indicate how the royal family might be changing in the years to come.