Prince Harry and Meghan Markle face criticism over photos of their private Remembrance Day tribute in a California cemetery after royal family's public ceremony

• The Duke and Duchess of Sussex's photos from their visit to a Los Angeles cemetery on Remembrance Sunday has been branded a "distasteful PR stunt" by Piers Morgan and other commentators.
• The couple released the photos of their private visit after reports that the palace denied Prince Harry's request to be represented at the royal family's Remembrance service surfaced.
• They aren't the only royals to be photographed paying tribute privately, with the Queen sharing a photo of her visit to Westminster Abbey over the weekend on Instagram.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are facing criticism for sharing photos of their private visit to the Los Angeles National Cemetery on Remembrance Sunday.

The photos, obtained by Insider via the Sussexes' press office, show Meghan Markle and Prince Harry visiting the gravesites of two commonwealth soldiers. They laid flowers that the duchess picked from the garden of their Santa Barbara home.

Good Morning Britain host Piers Morgan called the photos a "distasteful PR stunt."

—Good Morning Britain (@GMB) November 9, 2020

Morgan added that he believed the photos were designed to get back at the palace after royal courtiers reportedly denied the duke's request to lay a wreath on his behalf at the royal family's Remembrance service on Sunday.

He was denied on the grounds that "he is no longer representing the monarchy," according to The Times. The publication added that The Queen was not made aware of Harry's request.

Meanwhile, royal correspondent Richard Palmer wrote on Twitter: "The rift between the palace and Harry and Meghan is likely to deepen again. Why the need to take a PR photographer and publicize your 'private' act of remembrance?"

—Richard Palmer (@RoyalReporter) November 9, 2020

The photos have been defended by some royal watchers.

"The Royal Family didn't lay a wreath on Harry's behalf. He and Meghan laid one in LA. If they didn't post pictures of them marking Remembrance Day, the media would've turned that into a story. Now they have, it's a publicity stunt? Just say you hate Meghan and go," Dionne Grant wrote on Twitter.

Another person posted a photo of Harry paying respects at a memorial service seven years ago, writing: "No outrage cause Meghan was not in the picture. We know where your problem lies, live with it."

Harry and Markle aren't the only royals to have their photographs taken at a private Remembrance service.

The Queen honours the Unknown Warrior at Westminster Abbey. 100 years ago, on 11th November 1920, an unidentified British serviceman, who died on the battlefields during the First World War, was brought from Northern France and buried @westminsterabbeylondon. The Unknown Warrior’s final resting place became an important symbol of mourning for bereaved families, representing all those who lost their lives in the First World War but whose place of death was not known, or whose bodies remained unidentified. It remains a solemn tribute to all service personnel who have lost their lives in combat. During the small private ceremony, a bouquet of flowers featuring orchids and myrtle - based on Her Majesty’s own wedding bouquet from 1947 - was placed on the grave of the Unknown Warrior in an act of remembrance. Take a look at our story to find out why... #WeWillRememberThem #LestWeForget

A post shared by The Royal Family (@theroyalfamily) on Nov 7, 2020 at 2:03pm PSTNov 7, 2020 at 2:03pm PST

The Queen was photographed paying her respects to the Unknown Warrior at Westminster Abbey over the weekend.

"During the small private ceremony, a bouquet of flowers featuring orchids and myrtle — based on Her Majesty's own wedding bouquet from 1947 — was placed on the grave of the Unknown Warrior in an act of remembrance," a spokesperson for the Queen wrote on the royal family's Instagram account.

Representatives for The Duke and Duchess of Sussex declined to comment when contacted by Insider for this article.

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