Did the Royals cover up Prince William’s cheating rumors while saying they couldn’t help Meghan Markle?

It's a rumor that hasn't surfaced since 2019, but Meghan Markle's explosive interview with Oprah Winfrey and the disclosures she and Prince Harry made regarding the royal family's inability to provide them with basic protection from the media and other sources is pushing us to revisit a once-dominant royal theory. During Kate Middleton's last pregnancy, reports started to circulate — secretly — that Prince William had been cheating on her with Rose Hanbury, the Marchioness of Cholmondeley, whom the Cambridge couple had been noted seeing less of by that spring.

Wherever tidbits about the supposed affair did surface, they always seemed to vanish quickly afterward, causing inquiring minds to wonder what unseen hand could be reaching out and silencing these rumors at the time. The hand became more apparent when In Touch released an article about the allegations in April: William's legal team contacted any UK outlets repeating similar information and threatened them with legal action. So, tell us how the royal family was unable to keep Meghan Markle's personal life out of the tabloids once more.

To refresh your memory, reports of William's alleged adultery began as rumors of a dispute between Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, and Rose Hanbury, a “rural rival” who had previously been a close friend. The reports, which had been circulating in tabloids, gained traction after a tweet from a British journalist appeared to confirm the affair. Some claim that William's legal action against UK newspapers that revived the accusations confirms the affair, while others argue that the Cambridge royals are actually more litigious than their forefathers. Both interested parties have been frustratingly quiet when it comes to confirming or denying these claims, according to followers of the alleged royal scandal.

When the most negative coverage of Meghan was splashed across the front page, Harry and Meghan assured Oprah that royals gave them nothing more than the advice to “lay low,” it seems that William had much more protection at his disposal when it came to rumors that harmed him and his family. In contrast to Harry and Meghan's forced choice of litigating negative stories retroactively, William had the luxury of launching a counterattack before his rumors were even permitted to become headline news in the UK.

More on the rumors: Prince William's wife is said to have asked him to keep his distance from Rose Hanbury.

When confronted by his wife about the allegations, Prince William reportedly denied the affair with Rose Hanbury, but Kate Middleton still took action, according to In Touch. Middleton is said to have instructed her husband to avoid associating with both Hanbury and her husband, potentially ending their children's friendship as well. According to the magazine, “Kate sees their relationship in an entirely different light now.”