Pregnancy taking its ‘toll’ on Meghan Markle as she cuts back on royal appearances

Meghan Markle is taking a break from her royal tour of Australia, as her pregnancy ‘takes its toll’.

It’s being reported that the Duchess is tired from the hectic tour schedule, which will see the couple attend 76 engagements over 16 days.

The 37-year-old Duchess of Sussex was scheduled to make appearances at Fraser Island today with her 34-year-old husband, Prince Harry.

However, the Duke of Sussex will now carry out the royal visits on his own, despite Meghan flying to Queensland, after he revealed on Sunday that his wife was missing from the Invictus Games cycling event because ‘being pregnant takes its toll’.

“She’s resting at home,” ABC News reports Prince Harry told an inquisitive fan, who asked where the Duchess of Sussex was.

She seemed to have gotten some rest though, as later in the day she appeared with Prince Harry to attend a reception hosted by the Prime Minister, Scott Morrison.

Kensington Palace then released a statement, saying the Duchess was taking a well-deserved break and cutting back on her appearances.

“After a busy programme, The Duke and Duchess have decided to cut back The Duchess’s schedule slightly for the next couple of days, ahead of the final week and half of the tour,” a statement from Kensington Palace read, according to the Express.

“The Duke will attend the cycling as scheduled this morning, and The Duchess will join him for this afternoon’s engagements.

“The Duke will continue with the engagements on Fraser Island as planned.”

Indeed, Meghan Markle had a hectic week last week, after kicking off with Princess Eugenie’s royal wedding on the 12th, after which the couple flew straight from London to Australia.

Since then, it’s been a whirlwind of royal engagements for the former actress, who revealed last week that she is pregnant with the couple’s first child.

The couple visited Sydney, Dubbo and Melbourne, before flying back to Sydney on Friday morning to visit Bondi Beach and open the Invictus Games on Saturday night.

They’re not even half way through their tour, which carries on with engagements in Fiji and Tonga, before they will make their way back to Sydney for the closing ceremony of the Games.

Prince Harry will continue on with the couple’s planned engagements today, which start with a Welcome to Country Smoking Ceremony and unveiling of a plaque for the dedication of the Forests of K’gari to the QCC.

He will then visit one of Fraser Island’s iconic lakes, Lake McKenzie, to meet with local elders and national park rangers and then travel to the beach to learn about the history of the Island’s logging trade.

Prince Harry will then take a boat to Kingfisher Bay and walk along the famous jetty, no doubt meeting many members of the public along the way.

It’s being speculated that Meghan Markle will perhaps join the Duke for the public walkabout, however nothing has been confirmed.

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