In case you missed the announcement on Tuesday, April 2, Meghan Markle and Prince Harry are now on Instagram. Unfortunately, they aren’t @duchessmegsxo and @princeharry4life, but they do now have an official account with the handle @sussexroyal. When it comes to who Meghan Markle and Prince Harry follow on Instagram, they’re keeping things pretty strict, and the list of accounts all have a specific connection to the couple and their lives as royals.
Basically, you can tag ’em all you want, but unless you are a member of the royal family yourself or run the account for one of the charitable organizations they work with, you’re not getting followed back. This is not an Instagram account about selfies or spooning bananas or wearing Golden Girls sweatshirts. This Instagram account is about "sharing the work that drives us, the causes we support, important announcements, and the opportunity to shine a light on key issues," as they so nicely put it in their first post.
It’s only been a few days, but currently Markle and Harry (and whoever runs their account) only follow 23 accounts — meanwhile, they’re followed by 3.9 million people — and they fit into a few different categories:
Fellow Royal Accounts
Sussex Royal follows @theroyalfamily (which posts about Queen Elizabeth and the royal family in general), @kensingtonroyal (updates about the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and previously also about Markle and Harry), and @clarencehouse (Prince Charles and Duchess Camilla). They also follow Princess Eugenie (@princesseugenie) and her father, Prince Andrew, Duke of York (@hrhthedukeofyork).
Organizations Harry Founded
Harry has co-founded a few organizations, so, of course, @sussexroyal follows them. Harry founded Sentebale (@sentebale) with Prince Seeiso of Lesotho to support children who are facing poverty and the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Botswana, Lesotho, and Malawi. He started the Invictus Games (@weareinvictusgames and @invictusgames2020) for wounded, sick, and injured military members and veterans in 2014. Then there’s Heads Together (@heads_together), a mental health initiative started by Harry, Prince William, and Kate Middleton.
Meghan’s Patronages
Four patronages for Markle were announced earlier this year, and the account follows the three that have accounts. There’s the National Theatre (@nationaltheatre), which speaks to Markle’s career as an actor; the Mayhew (@themayhew), an animal welfare organization; and Smart Works (@smartworkscharity), which helps unemployed women seek jobs. Sussex Royal also follows the Queen’s Commonwealth Trust (@queens_commonwealth_trust), which Markle was made Vice President of this year — Harry is the President.
Harry’s Patronages
Which leads us right into Harry’s patronages. He has many more than Markle. (She’ll get more as she goes along, don’t worry.) These include the following accounts that the Duke and Duchess follow: Well Child (@wellchild), the London Marathon (@londonmarathon), England Rugby (@englandrugby), Royal Ontario Museum (@romtoronto), Royal Marines (@royalmarines), Royal Air Force Honington (@rafhonington), Rhino Conservation Botswana (@rhinoconservationbotswana), Map Action (@mapaction), and the African Parks Network (@africanparksnetwork). Click on the links to find out more information about each one.
There is also one more account they follow that does not exactly fit into any of these categories: @queenscanopy. The Queen’s Commonwealth Canopy is "a network of forest conservation initiatives throughout the 53 nations of the Commonwealth." When Markle and Harry were in Oceania, they worked on the project and "unveiled six dedications to The Queen’s Commonwealth Canopy."
As you can see, @sussexroyal is all about work for the Duke and Duchess — and the occasional look at whatever Eugenie and Andrew are posting (also stuff about work). We just have to assume they’re following their friends and getting outfit inspiration from some other secret account (@definitelynotsussexroyal).
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