Did Meghan Markle's estranged father attend her wedding to Prince Harry? The Duchess of Sussex reaches out to Thomas Markle after his leg amputation

Entrepreneur and the Duchess of Sussex, Meghan Markle, has spoken to her estranged father, Thomas Markle, after the latter underwent emergency leg amputation surgery recently. The former actress and her father are not on speaking terms, having fallen out of favor since the schisms appeared in their relationship during her wedding to Prince Harry in 2018.

Meghan Markle’s father did not attend her May 2018 wedding to Prince Harry. Earlier, Thomas Markle had stated that he had decided to miss the May 19 wedding after it became public that he had been offered money to stage photographs for the paparazzi, as reported by TMZ. At the time, Thomas also had a heart attack a few days earlier, despite which he wished to attend his daughter’s wedding.

Within a day, however, Thomas decided that he would, in fact, attend the royal wedding, as reported by TMZ. A call from Meghan helped him change his mind, and he shared the news with the outlet that his daughter had told him she loved him and did not harbor resentment for him allowing paparazzi to photograph him in exchange for money.

Thomas changed his mind again in the span of a few hours when, on May 15, he stated that he would not, in fact, attend the wedding because of an emergent heart procedure. As per Business Insider, he had surgery the same day and had a stent inserted.

Meghan Markle got in touch with her father after his most recent emergency surgery

Meghan Markle’s father, who settled down in the city of Cebu, Philippines, this year, required emergency amputation. According to Page Six, a blood clot cut off the circulation in one of his legs, and his foot changed color. The procedure lasted around three hours.

Thomas Markle’s son, Thomas Jr, told the Daily Mail:

“My dad is being very brave. His foot turned blue and then black. It happened very quickly. I took him to a local hospital and they did some scans and an ultrasound and said the leg had to be amputated.”

Thomas was taken to a larger hospital where the portion below his left knee was amputated. His son said:

“There was no option. I was told the leg had to be removed and it was a case of life or death…One of his doctors said the next two or three days are critical. His left leg has been removed below the knee. They were worried about infection setting in - sepsis or gangrene. The flesh was black and dying.”

Additionally, Page Six reported that Thomas now has to get a clot in his left thigh removed.

Meanwhile, People magazine reported that a representative for Meghan stated that she had contacted her father after the procedure on December 3. The representative said:

“I can confirm she has reached out to her father.”

Earlier, during a 2021 special appearance with Oprah Winfrey, Meghan had told the television host that she was estranged from her father. As per the Los Angeles Times, she said at the time,

“I’ve lost my father.”

She also compared her father’s reaction to the paparazzi to the way her mother, Doria Ragland, handled the press during the time of her wedding. While speaking to Oprah, she said:

“Everyone has accountability. They hunted my mom down. You never heard her say a word. She's remained in silent dignity for four years watching me go through this.”

For now, it remains to be seen if her father’s recent health struggles play a role in repairing Meghan’s relationship with Thomas.