Meghan Markle believes she and Prince Harry are being 'picked on' and the restrictions being placed on them are 'payback' for wanting to be independent, she told her close friends, DailyMail.com can exclusively reveal.

Meghan grumbled to her inner circle last week over the Queen banning the couple from using the word 'royal' in their 'branding', later issuing an extraordinary statement appearing to complain the palace was treating them differently to other family members.

'Meghan said that [she and Harry] were left with no choice but to make a public statement,' a friend explained.

'She said if anyone should feel insulted, it should be them. They never intended to capitalize on the word royal, and to insinuate they were somehow abusing their privileges is absurd.'

Harry is now in Edinburgh for his last round of engagements as a working royal but Meghan will not be joining him there, instead meeting up with him in London.

The insider said she has no qualms about being in the UK.

Meghan Markle feels she and Prince Harry are being 'picked on' and the restrictions being placed on them are 'payback' for wanting to be independent, she told her close friends, DailyMail.com can exclusively reveal

Meghan grumbled to her inner circle last week over the Queen banning the couple from using the word 'royal' in their 'branding', later issuing an extraordinary statement appearing to complain the palace was treating them differently to other family members

Meghan also believes the Queen was 'under pressure to make those demands about the name change', because Harry is the Queen's 'favorite and others just can't deal with it.' The friend added: 'Meghan said she and Harry will continue to rise above jealousy and pettiness.' Pictured: Prince William and Kate

The friend added: 'Meghan is going straight to London, not Edinburgh because that's Harry's thing.

'She said she and Harry will continue to rise above jealousy and pettiness and focus on the good they are creating and on being the best parents to Archie.

'She said she will continue to champion Harry because out of everyone, he has the most integrity and the most loyalty.'

On Friday, Meghan and Harry put out a statement following the Queen's ban on them using the word 'royal' in their Sussex Royal 'branding', confirming a DailyMail.com report that Meghan didn't take the news well

Meghan also believes the Queen was 'under pressure to make those demands about the name change', because Harry is the Queen's 'favorite and others just can't deal with it.'

On Friday, Meghan and Harry put out a statement following the Queen's ban on them using the word 'royal' in their Sussex Royal 'branding', confirming a DailyMail.com report that Meghan didn't take the news well.

DailyMail.com first revealed that Meghan had complained to her friends about the move, telling them there was nothing 'legally stopping' her and Harry from using the name.

Their Friday statement struck a hostile tone in some sections and said neither the government nor the Queen herself owned the word 'royal' internationally - but they would nonetheless stop using the title.

They also appeared to complain the palace was treating them differently to other family members.

The statement said: 'While there is precedent for other titled members of the Royal Family to seek employment outside of the institution, for The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, a 12-month review period has been put in place.

'Per the agreement The Duke and Duchess of Sussex understand that they are required to step back from Royal duties and not undertake representative duties on behalf of Her Majesty The Queen.'

Meghan and Harry are back in the UK for a string of final engagements before their official departure on March 31. Meghan will appear in London with her husband for an awards ceremony for sick and injured military personnel on March 5. Pictured: The couple arriving back in Canada on February 14

The Duke of Sussex spoke at the Travalyst conference in Edinburgh promoting sustainable tourism this morning

The friend added to DailyMail.com: 'She said the reason they created their website in the first place was to be as transparent as possible. What was written was carefully worded and was in no way a jab at the Queen. '

Meghan and Harry are back in the UK for a string of final engagements before their official departure on March 31.

Meghan will appear in London with her husband for an awards ceremony for sick and injured military personnel on March 5.

Harry is currently in Scotland, where he appeared to launch Travalyst on Wednesday, a new eco-friendly travel firm in Edinburgh - asking delegates 'just to call him Harry'.

He wants the Travalyst project to 'bring more transparency around carbon emissions for individual flights' and make vacations as eco-friendly as possible.

Harry's involvement was announced last year as the Sussexes were criticized for using private jets despite regularly flaunting their eco credentials. This included four trips in just 11 days in August.

The Duke and Duchess were also said to have flown into Florida for a JP Morgan conference in Miami on February 6 on the bank's private jet from Vancouver.