Trump Windsor banquet highlights royal pageantry as Harry and Meghan stay out of sight in California

President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump enjoyed a showcase of royal pageantry at Windsor Castle on Wednesday, as the king and queen hosted a state banquet for the visiting U.S. leader. The night underscored the ceremonial pull of the monarchy on the world stage, even as a high-profile couple with royal ties stayed largely out of sight across the Atlantic. Prince William and Kate Middleton were at the center of the public spectacle, while Prince Harry and Meghan Markle remained absent from the ceremonial foreground, eluding the spotlight that typically intensifies around such a royal milestone.

The banquet at Windsor Castle was designed to project a meticulously choreographed display of ceremony and diplomacy. The guest list included high-profile figures from business and media, with Tim Cook of Apple among the attendees, along with Rupert Murdoch and golfer Nick Faldo. The table setting reportedly involved an elaborate arrangement of cutlery and service for about 160 guests. The menu featured Ballotine de Poulet Fermier en Robe de Courgettes, a boneless free-range chicken dish that reportedly showcased the nuanced, high-end French phrasing used in the evening’s dining choices. Trump sat in a position that placed him alongside the royal leadership, while the King and the Prince of Wales were also part of the formal proceedings.

Across the Atlantic, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle were said to be laying low at their Montecito home, a conspicuous departure from the couple’s usual habit of using high-profile royal moments to amplify their own profile. The Daily Mail reported that the couple, who have often drawn attention for their appearances at major events, appeared to have disappeared from the couple’s customary Montecito haunts during the Windsor visit. The paper described the couple’s absence from local hotspots such as Pierre La Fond, Lucky’s Steakhouse, and the upscale Coast Village Road shopping and dining precinct. Even Miramar Beach, a frequent weekend spot for their dog walks and surf lessons, was described as quiet in their absence.

Analysts and royal commentators suggested the Sussexes may have made a deliberate choice to avoid eclipsing or complicating Trump’s state visit. Royal commentator Richard Fitzwilliams said the couple’s absence could reflect a strategic decision to refrain from actions that could provoke Trump at a moment when the U.K. was trying to present a unified, ceremonial front. “I’d be surprised if the Sussexes do anything this week that might annoy,” Fitzwilliams told the Daily Mail, noting that the pageantry of the event was designed to impress the president and that any move by the Sussexes risked drawing Trump’s attention away from the crown’s presentation.

The relationship between Trump and the Sussexes has long been tense, dating back to Meghan’s early 2016 remarks about Trump and his response several years later. The couple’s interactions with the U.S. president have included sharp exchanges in the past, though Trump has also signaled a willingness to engage with the royals when it serves broader diplomatic aims. In recent months, Trump’s interactions with the royal family have again drawn attention in Britain, particularly as the U.K. positions itself in larger global conversations about security, trade, and diplomacy.

The banquet came as the U.K. prepares to host global leaders under a veil of formal diplomacy and public ceremony. Trump’s presence at Windsor, alongside Prince Charles and Prince William, underscored the monarchy’s role in international relations and soft power projection. The event’s grandiosity contrasted with the Sussexes’ quiet week in Montecito, where Meghan has kept a relatively low public profile amid a multi‑month cycle of media attention surrounding her Netflix project’s second season and Harry’s ongoing public appearances abroad.

Observers noted the delicate balance involved in any royal engagement that intersects with a politically charged U.S. president. While Trump has repeatedly expressed personal distaste for Meghan, his eyes, as analysts noted, remain on the broader relationship with the British Crown and its ability to maintain stable channels with Washington. Fitzwilliams suggested that the Sussexes’ restraint reflects an awareness of how visible actions during a high-stakes political moment could complicate or strain those channels. He pointed to the broader context: that Harry’s trip to the U.K. last week and Meghan’s media campaign around her Netflix series have already kept the couple in the public eye without them needing to participate in every royal occasion.

The timing also reflected long-standing currents in the couple’s relationship with the royal family and with the United States. Meghan’s absence from the U.K. since September 2022, following the Queen’s death and related charity activities, has been notable, even as she has continued to engage with audiences through media projects and interviews from a distance. Trump’s remarks about Meghan—at times pointed, at other moments more muted—have colored the political backdrop to these visits, illustrating how personal narratives intersect with diplomatic moments. When questions about Meghan arose in the past, Trump’s responses varied, but the broader pattern of tension has persisted through years of evolving dynamics within the royal family and the couple’s evolving public role.

Meanwhile, the Windsor banquet itself was a reminder of how ceremonial events can catalyze attention from around the world, even as the focus shifts between the formal state enterprise and private, domestic spaces overseas. The event’s guest list and culinary details underscored the social and cultural signaling embedded in such occasions—a mix of diplomacy, prestige, and tradition that continues to draw global notice. The contrast with Montecito’s comparatively quiet landscape for Harry and Meghan highlighted how personal choices can shift the narrative without altering the larger framework of the royal family’s public life.

Looking ahead, analysts expect the Sussexes to remain restrained in the near term, particularly while significant international discussions unfold at events like state visits and high-level diplomacy. The potential for unpredictable moves remains a possibility in a public arc where private decisions can ripple across diplomatic and media landscapes. Yet for now, the couple’s strategy appears to be one of quiet withdrawal from the spotlight, at least for the moment, to avoid distracting from the ceremonial centerpiece of the visit and to preserve their own standing in an evolving relationship with both the U.K. monarchy and the political landscape in the United States.

The Windsor night thus stands as a tableau of contrasts: a state visit steeped in pageantry and protocol, a royal family united in public display at a moment of global significance, and a prominent, globally watched couple choosing discretion over disruption at a time when international attention is focused on leadership, alliance, and diplomacy.