It has now been two years since Prince Harry and Meghan Markle distanced themselves from the British monarchy, and have been living in a luxurious Californian villa in Montecito, the chic eastern suburb of Santa Barbara, for 18 months. But already, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex are planning to move and this, for multiple reasons, detailed in the latest edition of the magazine Paris Match, of January 13, 2022.
In July 2020, the couple moved to the domain of Riven Rock, which he bought from the maligned Russian oligarch Sergey Grishin, for 14.6 million dollars. Prince Harry financed part of it thanks to the inheritance of his mother Diana and a loan was taken out in the name of Meghan Markle. With their son Archie (2 years old), the Sussexes therefore took up residence in a comfortable villa of “25 rooms, 9 bedrooms, 16 bathrooms“, which also counts “a spa, a swimming pool, a wine cellar and a 3 hectare park“, as our colleagues point out. Although they have controlled the slightest appearance since their arrival on the West Coast, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have shown a few bits of living room or office with refined decoration, between beige walls, materials in raw wood and symbolic decorative objects. Only here, Meghan Markle already wants to leave her “Chateau” – as she calls it, in French – and change address.
“The place no longer excites him“, reported a relative, quoted by Paris Match. The environment “does not suit him“, we add. “The truth is that she lives above ground. And what happens outside her asteroid, she doesn’t care. She only knows that for her interests – or what she thinks her interests are – she has to live there..” Because if the Sussexes have chosen this upscale suburb, it is not only for its exceptional setting, on a hill with lush vegetation, overlooking the sea: it is that it concentrates a number of influential ultra-rich.
Except that in this little paradise, two clans oppose each other: that of “the Art of Living”, against that of “New Money”. The first brings together the long-time wealthy inhabitants, followers of hikes and simple pleasures. But in recent years, “Nasdaq billionaires” and Hollywood stars have invaded the premises, with a completely different mentality, much less friendly.
The Château Montecito, “false Versailles of impeccable bad taste”
One of them is none other than Oprah Winfrey, who has attracted a number of personalities with her, starting with her little protege: Meghan Markle. “It was she who introduced it to the ultra-rich for whom Montecito is not a place of art of living but the obligatory marker of success.“, comments a neighbor. The “old” of Montecito would not see the arrival of the Sussexes with a good eye since since their installation, “house prices are skyrocketing“, helicopters pollute the sky and voyeur tourists are oppressive. A degraded living environment that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have not been able to compensate for, since they have not made any special effort to integrate in this very special community.
In addition to being isolated in their own neighborhood, the Sussexes must be wary of other nuisances. Some are disturbing but not necessarily dramatic: “The scent of cannabis fields cultivated 3 kilometers away“, which the Duchess finds”nauseating“. Other more serious threats: the coyotes that prowl and have already made a neighbor’s poodle their snack, a bear that has also been reported in the area, but above all, the mudslides, which have already ravaged the area. in 2018.
For all these reasons, the parents of Archie and Lilibet (7 months) are already planning to flee Riven Rock, with a new, even more luxurious address in mind: the Montecito Castle, “fake Versailles in impeccable bad taste“, according to Paris Match. The Sussexes were unhappy at Kensington Palace, will they finally find what they are looking for in their Californian hall of mirrors?