MEGHAN & HARRY: The Real Story

AS THEY CELEBRATE THEIR SEVENTH ANNIVERSARY, HOW THE DUKE AND DUCHESS OF SUSSEX DEFIED THEIR HATERS AND BEAT THE ODDS

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Seven years of marriage. A lifetime of stories,” Meghan Markle captioned an Instagram post on the May 19 anniversary of her marriage to Prince Harry, alongside a shot of a mood board chronicling their life together. On it, she shared multiple never-before-seen private photos of them and their kids, Archie, 6, and Lilibet, 4, with annotations, quotes and the lyrics to “Stand By Me,” which was performed at their 2018 wedding, all seemingly handwritten in Meghan’s calligraphy. “Thanks to all of you (whether by our side, or from afar) who have loved and supported us throughout our love story — we appreciate you.”

The post also served as a taunt to their haters. “Let’s be fair, they have come under some pretty wilting criticism, much of it perfectly legitimate, some of it not,” royal expert Christopher Andersen tells In Touch of the polarizing couple, whose union has so far endured racist headlines, failed business ventures and accusations of bullying, betrayal and dereliction of duty. They’ve severed ties with their families and recently lost a lawsuit, which will likely prohibit them from ever returning to England together. Yet so far, they seem to have grown “stronger as an ‘us against the world’ team,” adds Andersen. “I think that despite everything that has happened and continues to happen, they remain in love.”

The storm of controversy still shows no signs of subsiding. Even Meghan’s anniversary post garnered a slew of negative comments because she didn’t mention Harry by name in the caption. And in late April, she was slammed for continuing to use the HRH title on a card she sent to a friend, despite no longer being a working royal. “I don’t want to be part of the pile-on,” former BBC royal commentator Jennie Bond tells