Duchess Kate Has Been 'Reaching Out' to Meghan More Since Daughter's Birth

Duchess Kate and Meghan Markle have had a rocky relationship following Prince Harry and Prince William's rift — all the details

Starting over. Duchess Kate and Meghan Markle have not been particularly close, but there might still be hope for a reconciliation in their future.

“Kate has been reaching out to Meghan a lot more since [Lilibet] was born, she’s sending [notes and] gifts and trying to build up a relationship,” a source exclusively tells Us Weekly. “The firm has been instructing staffers to reach out more to Harry and Meghan to get them to soften a bit.”

Duchess Kate Has Been Reaching Out Meghan Markle More — Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle. Shutterstock (2)

Kate, 39, and Meghan’s relationship was seemingly strained by the time the Sussexes announced their plans to step down as senior royals in January 2020. Following their decision to permanently leave their royal duties and move to California, Meghan, 39, and Prince Harry explained their side of the story during the couple’s CBS tell-all, which aired in March.

While discussing her experience with the royal family, the Suits alum claimed her complicated relationship with the Duchess of Cambridge was made worse by the U.K. press.

“If you love me, you don’t have to hate her. And if you love her, you don’t have to hate me,” she explained at the time.

Meghan also shared that the “narrative” about how she made Kate cry ahead of her May 2018 wedding was false.

“The reverse happened. … A few days before the wedding she was upset about flower girl dresses and it made me cry. It really hurt my feelings,” the retired actress clarified. “It was a really hard week of the wedding. And she was upset about something, but she owned it, and she apologized. And she brought me flowers and a note, apologizing.”

After the interview, a source told Us that Kate “feels that there was a misunderstanding” between her and the California native.

Another insider noted that Kate and Meghan hadn’t been in contact for a while.

“They were never that close, but the reason they’re not speaking is because of the rift between Prince Harry and Prince William,” the source told Us. “Harry and William have communicated sparingly over the last year, but none of their communications have been friendly in quite some time. There is real animosity that the brothers have toward one another, and that has spilled over to Meghan and Kate’s relationship, making it very hard for them to be friends or even friendly.”

Although there has been tension between the foursome, more of an effort was made to mend the issue since Meghan and Harry, 36, welcomed their daughter, Lili, earlier this month.

“We are all delighted by the happy news of the arrival of baby Lili,” William, 39, and Kate, who share Prince George, 7, Princess Charlotte, 6, and Prince Louis, 3, wrote via Instagram at the time. “Congratulations to Harry, Meghan and Archie.”

During a royal engagement with first lady Dr. Jill Biden on June 11, Kate added that she “can’t wait to meet” the new addition to Meghan and Harry’s family.

“We haven’t met her yet. I hope that will be soon,” she said.

With reporting by Travis Cronin