Meghan Markle's 37th birthday—and very first birthday as a royal—is today. And to mark the occasion, the royal family pulled out all the stops across its Twitter and Instagram accounts to make sure Meghan gets a birthday post on each and every account. It's a very public embracing and show of support to their newest member. Kensington Palace, which represents Meghan, Prince Harry, Prince William, and Kate Middleton, naturally shared a tweet and Insta in Meghan's honor, thanking everyone for the birthday wises. The team pulled a pretty event photo of her, so no fancy new royal portrait or personal photo this time: This content is imported from Instagram. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site. This content is imported from Twitter. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site. Thank you everyone for your lovely messages on The Duchess of Sussex's birthday! #HappyBirthdayHRH pic.twitter.com/kECGU6fnl0 — The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge (@KensingtonRoyal) August 4, 2018 So did the Royal Family Twitter and Instagram, which represents Buckingham Palace—and particularly Queen Elizabeth II, Meghan's good friend, and her husband Prince Philip. Of course a photo of Meghan and the Queen looking like BFFs was the natural choice: This content is imported from Instagram. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site. This content is imported from Twitter. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site. Happy Birthday to HRH The Duchess of Sussex! #HappyBirthdayHRH pic.twitter.com/qId94pYuNo — The Royal Family (@RoyalFamily) August 4, 2018 Clarence House, which represents Meghan's parents-in-law Prince Charles and Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall, also shared a birthday tribute featuring a photo with the three of them together: This content is imported from Instagram. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site. This content is imported from Twitter. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site. Wishing HRH The Duchess of Sussex a very Happy Birthday 🎂 pic.twitter.com/mjvSETqaqF — The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall (@ClarenceHouse) August 4, 2018 A united, cross-platform front—and a way of saying, in the midst of the Thomas Markle drama, they remain firmly behind Meghan. Meghan and the royal family are on vacation this month, but Meghan and Harry are expected to make a public appearance at the wedding of Harry's good friend Charlie van Straubenzee later today. This content is imported from {embed-name}. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site. Alyssa Bailey News and Strategy Editor Alyssa Bailey is the news and strategy editor at ELLE.com, where she oversees coverage of celebrities and royals (particularly Meghan Markle and Kate Middleton). This content is created and maintained by a third party, and imported onto this page to help users provide their email addresses. You may be able to find more information about this and similar content at piano.io<doc-sep>MEGHAN Markle will mark her 37th birthday today, her first in the royal family, having no contact with her father. The Duchess of Sussex will be considering the best way to respond to her father Thhomas Markle’s tirades that have shocked the world, and worried royal minders who fear he will continue to cause problems. Richard Fitzwilliams, a commentator for many years on royal events on TV and radio, including CNN, the BBC, and Sky News, told news.com.au he had never seen anything like the current Markle situation. And that included the scandals that previously engulfed the Windsors, because as headline-grabbing as they were, there was not a figure like Mr Markle who broke royal confidences and protocol. The Duchess of Sussex will celebrate her birthday this weekend at the wedding of friends of Prince Harry. Back when she was allowed social media, the Suits actress wrote on her blog her mum used to say a birthday was like “your own personal New Year”. In 2016 she wrote birthdays were “your own chance to make resolutions just for yourself and what you prognosticate for the year ahead” and told readers of her blog she always wished for “more inspiration, always more inspiration”. Given her current situation, this year will be no different. Mr Fitzwilliams said the duchess’ birthday came at a difficult time. “It’s in a period for Meghan Markle that has been most successful in wowing crowds and the charitable aspect of her work. There is no question she and Harry have plans...to Fiji, Tonga, Australia and New Zealand in October and there is a lot of speculation that they will be going to the United States, but there’s no question she is popular - but there is the problem of the family. And the father.” Mr Fitzwilliams said the situation was “unfortunate”. The focus for Meghan should be ramping up her charity work and promote causes that she felt strongly about, as well as getting to know the UK and Commonwealth. “The last few weeks have been clouded by this because it has been unprecedented, but remember how successful she is, how in control she is. Unlike Harry’s other girlfriends she knows how to deal with the attention. Unlike her father.” This week Mr Markle said he wanted to send Meghan a card but he doubted she would ever see it. In this regard there was a lot to celebrate this weekend, but it would be a subdued affair. As for Mr Markle, he had to be brought under control before it was too late. “This is absolutely unprecedented it’s awful for the people to try and cope with it and it is uncontained at the moment. How you do that with someone who is not predictable, I don’t know, no wonder courtiers are concerned.” It would all come to an end one way or the other. “It must be stopped but how it is stopped I don’t know.” “He’s a person who is completely unused to the media frenzy over anything and he’s 74 and in poor health - having said that once he opened the door to Piers Morgan and Good Morning Britain for half an hour, that was very, very unwise. He started repeating things Prince Harry had said to him. It doesn’t matter it wasn’t exactly what he said, the point is you can’t have a loose cannon. You cannot trust someone (like that).” He told news.com.au no one knew how it would all end. “In theory there is no way of controlling him. Harry has never met him, he’s complaining Meghan has cut him off, no doubt because he’s giving these interviews...” Asked about persistent rumours in London that Meghan was about to make a solo trip to the US, he said it could allow a meeting with her father or at least with an intermediary. “In some way Thomas Markle has to appreciate if he is to be in any contact with Meghan in a way he would wish he must not do what he is currently doing.” Part of the problem for the public was the palace rarely gave any comments, so it was difficult to know what exactly happened behind the scenes to bring Mr Markle into the fold before the wedding. Royal watchers spoken to by news.com.au this week said Meghan and Harry may have had their reasons to keep him at arms length. “It’s messy and we aren’t aware how it all might play out. But there is one thing for sure, he has to stop. Thomas Markle is acting like a loose cannon...his behaviour is unpredictable and that’s fatal in royal affairs,” Mr Fitzwilliams said. Half-sister Samantha had attacked Meghan repeatedly with “appalling” and “poisonous” comments, and entering the Celebrity Big Brother house - as has been rumoured - would be a “tasteless” move, Mr Fitzwilliams said. In an interview this week, Mr Markle claimed Meghan changed her phone number and was sending him “mixed messages”, dismissed the royals as a “Monty Python sketch” and accused his daughter of having a “sense of superiority”. He suggested it would be better for Meghan if he died, and that Princess Diana would be disgusted with how he was being treated. Veteran royal watcher Phil Dampier, author of Royally Suited: Harry and Meghan in their Own Words, told news.com.au: “Harry and Meghan have tried ignoring the Markles, but it’s not working. Before things get even more embarrassing for the royal family, they must try to build bridges. Meghan is considered to be a major asset for the royal family and someone who can help modernise the monarchy, and if anything, her family woes seem to have boosted her popularity even more. Royalty Inc author Stephen Bates said she made the royals “less stuffy”. “She broadens the gene pool really, she brings a different perspective and also a different appearance, beyond the obvious, to the Royal Family. She is bound to make them appear less stuffy and to inject different ideas into their gene pool. I think it’s very good for the monarchy.” andrew.koubaridis@news.com.au<doc-sep>Meghan Markle‘s 37th birthday on August 4 is a big day for the royal family. Not only does it mark Meghan’s first official birthday as the Duchess of Sussex, it’s also the birthday of another important royal: the late Queen Mum, Queen Elizabeth‘s beloved mother. The Queen Mum, born Elizabeth Angela Marguerite Bowes-Lyon on August 4, 1900, was an important member of the royal family. One of nine children, she was intelligent and well-educated, and spoke French fluently by age 10 after receiving home-schooling lessons, according to the royal family’s official website. She met her husband, then Prince Albert, in her late teens and they married in 1923. The couple’s first daughter, Princess Elizabeth was born in 1926, and their second, Princess Margaret, in 1930. Get push notifications with news, features and more. The Queen Mum and her husband unexpectedly claimed the throne (following the abdication of Prince Edward over his marriage to American divorcée Wallis Simpson) in 1937, and she immediately made it the central duty of her and her family. Politics - World Leaders at Buckingham Palace, London The Queen Mum and Queen Elizabeth | Credit: PA Images via Getty She was so dedicated that when World War II began and officials suggested she move with her children to North America, she famously responded, “The children will not leave unless I do. I shall not leave unless their father does, and the King will not leave the country in any circumstances whatsoever.” 1926. The Duke and Duchess of York (later King George VI and Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother) pictured with their daughter (later, Queen Elizabeth II) as she sleeps in a precious christening robe, which has been used in the Royal Family for generations. The Queen Mother and Queen Elizabeth as a baby | Credit: Popperfoto/Getty As a new mother, the Queen Mum was attached to baby Elizabeth and spoke openly about how hard it was to leave her to fulfill her royal duties. When she and Albert had to travel to Australia in 1927, she wrote in her diary that she felt “very miserable at leaving the baby,” according to the biography, The Queen Mother. Grab Cut Insert Cut F:PHOTOMediaFactory ActionsRequests DropBox32705#getty50679438.jpg The Queen Mother | Credit: Time Life Pictures/Getty When her husband died in 1952, many thought the Queen Mum would become a recluse since she was so devoted to her husband — but she stayed active because of her obligations to her family and the people. She was also especially close with her grandson Prince Charles. Q Mother Diana William The Queen Mother, Prince William and Princess Diana | Credit: Tim Graham/Getty The Queen Mum also cared deeply about her great-grandchildren. According to The Guardian, she placed £19 million in trusts for them to be passed on after she died in March 2002. She left the bulk of her estate, between £50 and £70 million to Queen Elizabeth. (Princess Margaret died less than two months before her mother.) The Duchess Of Sussex Undertakes Her First Official Engagement With Queen Elizabeth II Meghan Markle and Queen Elizabeth | Credit: Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images The Queen Mum’s primary legacy is that she was one of the most popular members of the monarchy, according to Ipsos, and probably played a big role in how beloved the family is today. Sentebale Polo 2018 Meghan Markle and Prince Harry | Credit: Chris Jackson/Getty Images<doc-sep>When you subscribe we will use the information you provide to send you these newsletters. Sometimes they'll include recommendations for other related newsletters or services we offer. Our Privacy Notice explains more about how we use your data, and your rights. You can unsubscribe at any time. Meghan Markle celebrates her 37th birthday today alongside husband Prince Harry. The slender Duchess of Sussex has long kept up her healthy eating habits in order to stay slim. Her love of green juice and salads has been documented on her now-deleted lifestyle website, The Tig. However, Meghan, who is also a foodie, has her vices just like the rest of us – and will no doubt enjoy these on her birthday. Her favourite foodie vice is French fries, or chips as they are more commonly known in the UK.<doc-sep>
Meghan Markle to attend friend's wedding on her birthday The American royal will mark turning 37 by the side of her husband Prince Harry at his best friend Charlie van Straubenzee’s wedding to Daisy Jenks in Surrey. But Harry is likely to spoil his wife today as this birthday is extra special because it marks Meghan’s first birthday as an official member of the Royal Family. Meghan Markle’s birthday is also a special day for the Queen, whose mother, the Queen Mother, was born on the same day in 1900. It comes after Prince Harry, 33, whisked Meghan off for a romantic getaway in Africa to celebrate her birthday last year, a year after they started dating. The smitten prince is said to have organised a surprise BBQ under the stars for his new girlfriend. And one year later, Meghan is now an official member of the firm after the pair married in a spectacular Royal Wedding back in May. The pair met in July 2016 and announced their engagement in in November 2017, barely two years after meeting for the very first time. But the royal couple, now the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, haven’t looked back and are busy committing themselves to public engagements and their charitable endeavours. Meghan Markle will celebrate her 37th birthday on Saturday Meghan Markle’s first royal moments in pictures Thu, August 2, 2018 View the Duchess of Sussex’s first royal moments in pictures from her first official international engagement to her first solo outing with the Queen Play slideshow Getty Images 1 of 10 Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's first public kiss on the steps of St George's Chapel after they exchanged vows Meghan Markle will mark turning 37 by the side of her husband Prince Harry So much so, Meghan undertook 17 royal duties before the wedding and her first official post-wedding duty was just three days after the big day. We are yet to see Meghan carry out her first solo engagement alone, but as a pair she and Harry have charmed the nation, young and old alike, and proved very popular on their recent visit diplomatic trip to Ireland. Meghan previously told how she was keen to get stuck in and “hit the ground running”. The pair will carry out their first official overseas tour as a married couple this year when they fly out to Australia, Fiji, the Kingdom of Tonga and New Zealand this autumn. Meghan Markle is marking her first birthday as a royal on Saturdy Meghan Markle's birthday will be marked at Harry's close friend's wedding