Meghan Markle facts: Duchess of Sussex's age, husband, children, parents and career revealed

3 May 2023, 16:04

Meghan Markle became the latest member of the Royal Family when she married Prince Harry in 2018.

But what was Meghan famous for before meeting Prince Harry and where does she live now?

Here's all the important facts about the former actress.

1. How old is Meghan Markle and where is she from?

   Meghan Markle was born on August 4, 1981. She celebrated her 41st birthday in 2022.

   She was born in Canoga Park, California.

   Her full name is Rachel Meghan Markle.

2. When and how did she meet Prince Harry?

   

   According to the couple, they met on a blind date, arranged by a mutual friend in London in July 2016. She had been doing press for the TV show Suits in the UK.

   "I didn’t know much about him and so the only thing that I had asked her when she said she wanted to set us up was — I had one question. I said, ‘Well, is he nice?’ Because if he wasn’t kind, then it didn’t seem like it would make sense," she said.

   Harry later said: "I had never watched Suits. I had never heard of Meghan before."

   Upon their marriage in 2018, she became Duchess of Sussex.

   The couple's son, Archie Mountbatten-Windsor, was born in 2019. Meghan welcomed her second child, daughter Lilibet, in 2021.

   

3. What was Meghan Markle famous for before meeting Prince Harry?

   

   Meghan Markle was an actress, and had appeared in various TV shows and movies before meeting Prince Harry.

   She was best known for her role as Rachel Zane in American legal TV drama Suits for seven seasons, from 2011 to 2017.

   Before this, she appeared as a 'briefcase girl' on the US version of Deal or No Deal.

   Meghan has also been involved in humanitarian causes, particularly ones that support women's health and rights.

   She has worked with different organizations in Africa and Asia, including World Vision and the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women.

   After her engagement to Harry, she announced her retirement from acting and her intention to focus on humanitarian work.

4. Who are Meghan Markle's parents?

   

   Meghan's mother is Doria Ragland, a yoga instructor and therapist living in Los Angeles.

   Her father is Thomas Markle, a retired Emmy–award-winning lighting director and camera operator, who worked on shows such as General Hospital and Married With Children.

   Her parents divorced when she was six years old, but the split was amicable. "I never saw them fight," she told Vanity Fair in 2017.

   Describing her ancestry, Meghan said: "My dad is Caucasian and my mom is African American. I'm half black and half white. I have come to embrace [this and] say who I am, to share where I'm from, to voice my pride in being a strong, confident, mixed-race woman."

   Her mother is descended from Africans enslaved in Georgia, while her father comes from Dutch, English, and Irish settlers.

5. Who was Meghan Markle's first husband?

   

   Meghan was previously married to film producer and talent manager Trevor Engelson from 2011 to 2013.

   The pair dated for six years before getting married in Jamaica. They filed for divorce citing "irreconcilable differences" in August 2013.