Why Meghan Markle Will Curtsy to Kate Middleton

Meghan Markle is officially the Duchess of Sussex thanks to her recent marriage to Prince Harry-much like Kate Middleton is officially the Duchess of Cambridge thanks to her marriage to Prince William. But, weirdly, Meghan will continue having to curtsy to her sister-in-law thanks to Britain's intense ranking structure.

Technically, Meghan is supposed to curtsy to people who outrank her-including the Queen (obvs), Prince Philip, Prince Charles, and Camilla. Due to William's position as future King of England, he also receives a curtsy-and, by extension, so does Kate Middleton.

The weird thing? While Meghan is required to curtsy to "blood princesses" (AKA princesses born into the royal family, such as Princess Anne, Princess Alexandra, Princess Beatrice, and Princess Eugenie) since they outrank her-if she's hanging with Harry, those same blood princesses have to curtsy to her because she and Harry, as a couple, outrank them.

"A curtsy to Princess Anne? Yes," a source explains to MailOnline. "She’s the daughter of the Sovereign. Princesses Eugenie and Beatrice? Yes. But not if Harry’s in the room; then they should curtsy to her. Nor before Princess Anne’s daughter Zara Phillips, who despite being a blood royal will still be below Meghan in the pecking order (and expected to curtsy to her if Harry is present)."