Prince Harry and Meghan Markle get new ‘Royal titles’ as edgy portraits unveiled

An artist who was the youngest to paint a portrait of the late Queen Elizabeth II has now turned his attention to Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, portraying them as historic royals

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have been treated to a new piece of artwork, by the same artist who painted the late Queen Elizabeth II.

Artist Dan Llywelyn Hall, who holds the distinction of being the youngest to paint a portrait of the late monarch, has revealed a series of new works. These include depictions of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle as historic royals.

In the edgy etchings, Meghan is portrayed as Dame Elizabeth Grey, Queen of England by marriage, while Harry is depicted as Charles Edward Stuart, better known as Bonnie Prince Charlie.

The artwork featuring Meghan is titled Returning White Queen and depicts her as Elizabeth Woodville, later known as Dame Elizabeth Grey, who was Queen of England by marriage to King Edward in 1464.

Harry is portrayed in a piece named Spectre Of The Bonny Prince, as Charles Edward Stuart, who was known as the Young Pretender and Bonnie Prince Charlie.

Undated handout photo issued by Dan Llywelyn Hall of a painting as part of a collection for the Society of Antiquities.

The painting is of the Duke of Sussex representing Charles Edward Stuart (known as Bonnie Prince Charlie) (Image: PA)

The painting is of the Duchess of Sussex imagined as the White Queen (Elizabeth Woodville), entitled Returning White Queen

The painting is of the Duchess of Sussex imagined as the White Queen (Elizabeth Woodville), entitled Returning White Queen (Image: PA)

Llywelyn Hall stated: “In Harry’s case, I have entered the story before he met Meghan the young party-goer with his future very much in the balance, a bit like the Bonnie Prince I have likened him to. I thought putting Meghan in the role of the White Queen, who was a Queen Consort and possibly the most influential ‘outsider’ in Royal history, might have a fine irony to it and not necessarily beyond the realms of reality.”

At just 32, Hall was commissioned by the Welsh Rugby Union in 2012 to create a portrait of the Queen, for which she sat at Windsor Castle. Since then, his Royal portfolio has expanded to include a portrait celebrating Prince William’s journey into fatherhood, a live painting of the state funeral of the late Queen, and the coronation procession of Prince Charles.

Hall has now created 10 new portraits inspired by royalty throughout history for the Society of Antiquaries. Fellow artist Adam Dant has also contributed 10 pieces to the collection. The exhibition, named ‘The Reign’, commemorates 150 years of the society at Burlington House in London’s Piccadilly. The artworks will be auctioned off to fund the cataloguing and digitisation of approximately 25,000 prints and drawings from the 18th and 19th centuries.

Speaking about his work, Hall said: “The royal family is possibly the most enthralling longest-running drama in history, the inspiration of theatre, books and every art form. It seemed that these figures caught on the knife edge of public opinion were ideal for drawing comparisons from distant monarchs like the exiled princes and princesses of the past, that lurk in the background but are still irrevocably tied to the job. We can’t help ourselves and wonder whatever next?”

Reacting to the new portraits on social media, one Mirror reader today wrote on Facebook: “The portrait is well painted, but is slightly reminiscent of the old paintings of Spanish ladies. Does she have Spanish heritage as well?” Another added: “Don’t look nothing like her.” A third declared: “Not flattering at all!”

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