Queen's sarcasm over Prince Harry's marriage to Meghan Markle unearthed

Prince Harry shared the nine-word response that his grandmother Queen Elizabeth II gave after he sought her permission to marry Meghan Markle.

Describing the ordeal in his memoir Spare, the Duke of Sussex said that he needed to follow royal protocol as the first six people in the line of succession to the throne need to ask the Queen for permission in order to be engaged.

Prince Harry shared that he was waiting to find his grandmother in a 'good mood' after she returned from a shooting trip in Sandringham.

He wrote about his conversation with the Queen and said, "I've been told that I have to ask your permission before I can propose." 

He said that the Queen was confused as she replied, "You have to?"

After Harry proceeded to explain the royal rules, the Queen replied: "Well then, I suppose I have to say yes."

He said: "I didn't get it. Was she being sarcastic? Ironic? Deliberately cryptic? Was she indulging in a bit of wordplay?"

"I'd never known Granny to do any wordplay and this would be a surprisingly bizarre moment (not to mention widely inconvenient) for her to start, but maybe she just saw the chance to play off my unfortunate use of the word 'have' and couldn't resist."