Meghan Markle Hugged a Teen in Windsor Who Wanted to Welcome Her

Meghan, Duchess of Sussex chats with well-wishers on the Long walk at Windsor Castle on September 10, 2022, two days after the death of Britain#039;s Queen Elizabeth II at the age of 96. - King Charles III pledged to follow his mother#039;s example of quot;lifelong servicequot; in his inaugural address to Britain and the Commonwealth on Friday, after ascending to the throne following the death of Queen Elizabeth II on September 8. — (Image credit: Photo by Kirsty O'Connor / Getty)

Sadly, at the time of Queen Elizabeth II's death, Princes William and Harry and their wives had been all but estranged for months.

That's why royal fans were so delighted to see the new Prince of Wales invite the Duke and Duchess of Sussex to join him and Catherine, the Princess of Wales, on a walkabout in Windsor this past weekend, where they greeted a crowd of well-wishers for upward of 40 minutes.

One well-wisher in particular, a teenage girl, drew attention from photographers and the media for the warm embrace she gave Meghan Markle on the day. She explained to CNN what happened.

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"We were just waiting for her to come, and she came near me and asked my name, and how my day was, how long I was waiting, and I asked her if I could have a hug and she hugged me back, so that was just quite an amazing moment," the girl said.

"I'm still shaking now. I can't really explain what the feeling was when she did it, but it was really nice."

Meghan, Duchess of Sussex receives a hug from a wellwisher on the Long walk at Windsor Castle on September 10, 2022, two days after the death of Britain#039;s Queen Elizabeth II at the age of 96. - King Charles III pledged to follow his mother#039;s example of amp;quot;lifelong serviceamp;quot; in his inaugural address to Britain and the Commonwealth on Friday, after ascending to the throne following the death of Queen Elizabeth II on September 8.

The interviewer then asked this royal fan why she felt compelled to hug the duchess.

"I don't know, it just went through my mind, like everyone was kinda cheering me on to, and I guess I just felt like I needed to in a way, like I just really wanted to at least hug her, because I look up to her in some ways and it just felt like it was the right thing to do," she explained.

Next, the journalist wanted to know if she felt particular sympathy for the duchess because of everything that has transpired between her and the Royal Family.

"I feel like it was quite nice to see William and Kate and Meghan and Harry together, and it was fine, but yeah, I just wanted to show her that she's, like, welcome here, I guess, and I wanted to hug her after everything that's happened, really," the girl said.

Royal watchers are divided in their opinion of the duchess after she and her husband left the U.K. and decided to give Oprah Winfrey a candid interview about their time as senior royals. (Let's also not forget the thinly veiled racism often aimed at her.)

That's partly why the crowds at Windsor, including the teenager, were surprised to see the Sussexes take part in the walkabout with the Waleses.

"I was like, 'Oh my gosh,' because I really didn't expect them to be here," the girl who hugged Markle said.

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Iris Goldsztajn is a London-based journalist, editor and author. She is the morning editor at Marie Claire, and her work has appeared in the likes of British Vogue, InStyle, Cosmopolitan, Refinery29 and SELF. Iris writes about everything from celebrity news and relationship advice to the pitfalls of diet culture and the joys of exercise. She has many opinions on Harry Styles, and can typically be found eating her body weight in cheap chocolate.