The King was only made aware of the move on Sunday.
The Duchess of Sussex is “taking one for the team” by moving back to the UK with her husband the Duke of Sussex and their two children, a royal commentator has suggested.
Harry and Meghan’s planned return to Britain came as a surprise to many on Wednesday night and the King was first made aware of the move just three days before it was made public.
They moved to the US more than six years ago but will move back to the UK later this month, making their home in a non-royal residence outside of London.
Former royal correspondent Jennie Bond told Sky News: “I think we should beware a pile-on on Meghan in particular, and I can see that already happening.
“This is the decision they’ve made probably for the sake of their children, as much as for Harry.
“Perhaps Meghan is taking one for the team here, because I’m not sure this is her life’s desire to live back in the UK.”
Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet have already enrolled in British schools.
The King is understood to welcome the opportunity to see more of the family in a private and personal capacity.
But the Sussexes’ status will remain the same, with the couple not being offered a “half-in-half-out” option when it comes to their roles.
Ms Bond, who covered the royal family for 14 years at the BBC, said the way the announcement was made was particularly surprising.
She said: “If I was the King, I’d actually be thinking, ‘Hang on, you came to tea with me, and we sat down and we chatted, and you didn’t even mention this?’ I find it entirely odd.
“I wish that they wouldn’t operate in this kind of secret way. Why didn’t they just put out a clear statement? Just tell us the facts, but we are left here just surmising and guessing at their reasons.”
The decision raises the question of how the news will be met by the Prince and Princess of Wales – and Kensington Palace has not yet commented.
William – the future king – is estranged from his brother after Harry levelled a barrage of accusations against the prince, Kate, the King and Queen Camilla in the years since the Megxit crisis of 2020.
Former BBC royal correspondent Peter Hunt suggested the shock return is likely to have left William “apoplectic”.
“In the long term, the return of the Sussexes to the UK opens up the prospect of two rival courts, William’s and Harry’s,” he told the Press Association.
“In the short term, Harry will be able to deepen his rapprochement with his father.
“And his presence back home will make it harder for his brother to duck a reconciliation.
“The surprise return of Harry and Meghan is likely to have left William apoplectic.”
A YouGov poll found last month that only 22% of Britons see Meghan in a positive light, compared with 65% who hold an unfavourable opinion of the former actress, with 33% seeing Harry positively and 58% negatively.
The Telegraph and The Sun – which both broke the story on Wednesday night – reported that Archie, seven, and Lilibet, five, will start at their new schools in September.
The Sussexes will retain their homes in Montecito, California, and Portugal, while the duchess will continue to run her lifestyle brand As Ever from their new base.
Ms Bond said the couple keeping their other properties could suggest they are “testing the water” with the move.
“The only word we’re getting from the Palace is that Harry and Meghan are not going to be working royals at all, and certainly not whilst they carry on with their commercial activity, or particularly Meghan’s, which I completely see she needs to do, and why shouldn’t she?” the broadcaster said.
“She’s an independent, relatively successful woman.
“They’re not giving up their property in California. They’ve also got a property in Portugal. And that would suggest they are testing the water somewhat.”
The announcement comes less than two months after the duke was trying to find a way to bring his wife and children to the UK safely to mark the one-year countdown to the Invictus Games in Birmingham.
At the end of June, he was still waiting for a review by the Risk Management Board, part of the process by which the Executive Committee for the Protection of Royalty and Public Figures rules on his security requirements – and he and his security detail were working to try to ensure the visit could take place safely.
Meghan travelled to the UK in July with Archie and Lilibet to join Harry when he finished a week of events promoting the games.
During the visit, the duke and duchess took their children to see the King for the first time in four years at his Highgrove home, but are not thought to have raised the prospect of a return to the UK at that meeting.
