The Real Reason the Queen Was Silent on Meghan Markle's Birthday

Meghan Markle turned 41 on August 4th–happy birthday!—and an outpouring of birthday messages came in on Thursday. "Wishing a happy birthday to The Duchess of Sussex!" said the Twitter account of The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, which posted a gorgeous photo of her. "Happy birthday to The Duchess of Sussex!" added the official Twitter account of The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall. One person was mum on social media: The Queen. Her Twitter account made no mention of the big day. Why? There actually may be a pretty good reason, according to one Royal expert. Read on to see the real reason why the Queen was silent on social media on Meghan Markle's birthday. 

Daily Express royal correspondent Richard Palmer was the first to notice that the Queen's Twitter feed was silent on Meghan's birthday. The official Royal Family Twitter feed shared only one tweet that day: "The Princess Royal was in Edinburgh this morning where she enjoyed a sneak peek of the @EdinburghTattoo rehearsals ahead of their opening night tomorrow. The Princess, who is Patron of @EdinburghTattoo, met piper training cadets at the Redford Barracks." But nothing about Meghan. Why? "It is thought the Queen congratulated Meghan privately yesterday but her official website neglected to mention her birthday after deciding it will only mark the birthdays of non-working members of the family when they end in a zero," Palmer wrote. Keep reading to see which celebs did wish Meghan a happy birthday.  

"This is the first year that the @royalfamily Twitter and Instagram accounts did not mark the duchess' birthday since her marriage in 2018, though is not to suggest that the queen did not send a personal private message," says Newsweek. "The perceived snub comes in the same week that the monarch notably left Harry out of a message in which she said that William and Charles were carrying on the late Prince Philip's pioneering environmental work."

Director, actor and film studio owner Tyler Perry, who reportedly allowed Harry and Meghan to stay at his home when they moved to America, shared a heartfelt birthday wish on Friday. "I've had a front row seat in your life for the past few years. I've watched you endure things that would have broken a lot of people. I'm so incredibly proud to see how happy you, your husband, and your kids are now. It fills me with joy to say Happy Birthday Princess Meghan." "LOVE HER!!!!!" commented actor and producer Crystal Renee. "Thank you Tyler Perry for rescuing Harry and Megan and Archie in their time of need if it was not for you and Oprah I'm not sure if we would be able to say happy birthday to her today if we go by what the Tabloid in UK say you is not a friend of Megan anymore but I like doing sure happy birthday again and thank you God bless," wrote another fan.

"For Markle's 40th last year, Her Majesty did commemorate her granddaughter-in-law's milestone birthday, posting a trio of photos, including one from her and Markle's visit to Cheshire on the anniversary of the Grenfell Tower fire," reports Elle UK. "Another photo was a sweet family shot of Markle, Prince Harry and baby Archie." For Dutchess Kate's 40th birthday, back in January, Harry and Meghan wished her well privately. "They did a video call," royal expert Christopher Andersen told Us Weekly. "They wished her a happy birthday. [It was] very private."

"Markle launched the initiative 40×40 for her previous birthday, which encouraged people from across the world to donate 40 minutes of their time to help women who have suffered job loss," reports Elle UK. "I believe mentorship is one way to help women regain confidence and rebuild their economic strength, and for my birthday, I have asked 40 friends, activists, athletes, artists, and world leaders to help kickoff a global effort by contributing 40 MINUTES OF MENTORSHIP to support women re-entering the workforce. With this time, I hope they each help someone advance a professional life on her own terms, and, I hope that they inspire countless others to give 40 minutes of their time as well," Markle wrote.