Prince Harry is said to be "horrified" of the constant criticism about his wife, Meghan Markle, one of his pals has claimed. The Duchess of Sussex has been on the receiving end of negative publicity in recent months, despite her efforts to salvage her previously tarnished image.

Meghan has this year launched a series of business ventures, including her Netflix show, With Love, Meghan, her lifestyle brand, As Ever, and most recently her podcast series, Confessions of a Female Founder. But while her business efforts were met with mixed reviews from fans, they were mostly blasted by critics. Now, a source close to the duke claimed that "the barrage of criticism serves only to intensify his loyalty to Meghan".

They told the Daily Mail: "It's horrible for him to know that people don't like his wife."

Harry's pal added: "He adores her and doesn't think she deserves any of the backlash or criticism that has been thrown at her over the past few years.

"He's told us that the more people hate her, the more he's going to stand by her. He's vowed to always protect the mother of his kids."

The latest accusations against the duchess included a royal commentator branding her As Ever products "snobby, salty, superficially sweet".

The Daily Mail's Maureen Callahan, who is US-based and is often critical of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, said that Meghan's latest offering "overpromised and under-delivered".

After her "brief taste test", Ms Callahan blasted the duchess that her products are "outrageously priced" and "inedible".

But Harry's pal insisted the duke would never badmouth people back, as they said:

"He hasn't got a nasty bone in his body."

The source also said that Harry is determined to keep a low profile when he visits the UK.

They said: "He tends to come in and out of the country under guise."

Last week, Harry came back to his home country to attend a two-day hearing of his appeal regarding a High Court ruling about the level of security he receives when he's in the UK.

The Duke recently told People magazine of how "proud" he is of his wife, saying: "

"I’m incredibly proud. I am so happy for my wife and fully support absolutely everything she’s done and continues to do."