Veterans Day is observed annually in the United States on 11 November, while the UK observes Remembrance Day at the same time. Veterans Day is a federal holiday in America, honouring military veterans of the United States Armed Forces and dates back to the end of World War I.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have made sure that their company, Archewell, observes both British and American traditions by marking the federal holiday as a day to observe both Veterans and Remembrance Day – as is made clear in their out of office email message.
“In observation of Veteran’s Day and Remembrance Day, our office is closed Friday, November 11,” reads the message.
The duo are expected to mark the day in a significant way. In the past, the couple have gone above and beyond to honour the millions of military veterans who’ve dedicated their lives to the armed forces.
The Remembrance Day military holiday is particularly significant for Prince Harry who served as a Captain in the British Army. During his 10-year service, the Duke carried out two frontline tours of Afghanistan.
Last year, the duo made a special trip to honour Veteran’s Day, to Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst army base in New Jersey. During their visit, Meghan and Harry met with service members from all six branches of the military, and hosted a luncheon for service members and their spouses.
The couple discussed the importance of mental health, the value of community and life in the military. As a former member of the British army, Prince Harry later opened up about the extreme isolation often felt by service members upon returning home.
“My experience in the military made me who I am today, and I will always be grateful for the people I got to serve with — wherever in the world we were,” he said.
“But in war, you also see and experience things you hope no one else has to… These stay with us, sometimes like a slideshow of images.”
Meghan and Harry moreover made a glitzy red-carpet appearance in 2021 as they attended the Intrepid Museum’s 2021 Salute to Freedom gala in New York. The Duke presented the inaugural Intrepid Valor Awards to five service members, veterans and military families “living with the invisible wounds of war”.
During the ceremony, Prince Harry delivered a poignant speech. “As we honour and reflect on Remembrance Day in the UK, which shares a date tomorrow with Veterans Day here in the US, my hope is for all of us to continue to support the wellbeing, and recognise the value of, our troops, veterans, and the entire military and service family. We and they are better for it,” he said.
In November 2019, the Duchess of Sussex chose to honour servicemen and women in the US by sharing a social media post about Veterans Day. A carousel of images was posted to Prince and Meghan’s official Instagram account, including one snap that showed the mother-of-one visiting US troops long before she joined the royal family.
The caption explained: “Today is Remembrance Day and also Veterans Day in the United States, a day to honour those who have bravely served in the Armed Forces. Thank you to all, for your service, sacrifice and commitment. It has been an important week to recognise those who serve (and have served) as well as to acknowledge their families.”
The post continued: “In 2014, The (now) Duchess of Sussex proudly went on @TheUSO tour with the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, visiting troops in five countries: Spain, Italy, Turkey, Afghanistan and the United Kingdom.
“During this tour, the Duchess met with service personnel and their families and she was proud to recognise their service to the country. At the time, The Duchess said: ‘I have always had such a profound respect for our nation’s troops and military families. I cannot thank them enough for everything they do for us.’ #VeteransDay #RemembranceDay.”
