The Duchess of Sussex has told Oprah Winfrey that the Duchess of Cambridge made her cry ahead of her wedding, after stories suggested that it was Meghan who had made Kate cry.

Reports circulated ahead of the Sussexes’ nuptials that Meghan left Kate in tears at Princess Charlotte’s bridesmaid dress fitting – but Meghan told Winfrey “the reverse” happened.

Meghan said she was not sharing the information to be “disparaging” – and described Kate as a “good person” – but added it was “really important for people to understand the truth”.

Meghan said Kate apologised and bought her flowers, adding that she has forgiven her.

She told the chat show host: “The narrative with Kate, which didn’t happen, was really, really difficult and something that… I think that’s when everything changed really.”

Winfrey pressed Meghan: “So specifically, did you make Kate cry?”

Meghan said “no” and when asked where that story came from and whether there was a situation where Kate “might have cried”, Meghan said: “No, no, the reverse happened. And I don’t say that to be disparaging to anyone, because it was a really hard week of the wedding, and she was upset about something, but she owned it and she apologised and she brought me flowers and a note apologising, and she did what I would do if I knew that I’d hurt someone, right, to just take accountability for it.

“What was shocking was, what was that, six, seven months after our wedding, that the reverse of that would be out in the world.”

Meghan added: “I would have never wanted that to come out about her, ever, even though it had happened, I protected that from ever being out in the world.”

Winfrey asked her to explain what happened, and Meghan said: “A few days before the wedding she was upset about something, pertaining to, yes, the issue was correct, about flower girl dresses, and it made me cry, and it really hurt my feelings.

“And I thought in the context of everything else that was going on in those days leading to the wedding that it didn’t make sense to not be just doing whatever, what everyone else was doing, which was trying to be supportive knowing what was going on with my dad and whatnot.”

Winfrey said: “This was a really big story at the time that you made Kate cry. Now you’re saying you didn’t make Kate cry, Kate made you cry.

“So, we all want to know what would make you cry? What were you going through? You were going through all of the anxiety that brides go through putting their wedding together, and going through all of the issues with your father, was he coming, was he not coming? And there was a confrontation over the dresses.”

Meghan replied: “It wasn’t a confrontation, and I actually think it’s…I don’t think it’s fair to her to get into the details of that because she apologised, and I’ve forgiven her.”

She said what was “hard to get over” was “being blamed for something that not only I didn’t do, but that happened to me”.

Meghan added: “Everyone in the institution knew it wasn’t true.”

Winfrey asked: “So why didn’t somebody just say that?” And Meghan replied: “It’s a good question.”

Meghan added: “I’m not sharing that piece about Kate in any way to be disparaging to her.

“I think it’s really important for people to understand the truth, but also I think a lot of it was fed into by the media, and look, I would hope that she would have wanted that corrected, and maybe in the same way that the palace wouldn’t let anybody else negate it, they wouldn’t let her because she’s a good person.

“And I think so much of what I have seen play out is this idea of polarity, where if you love me, you don’t have to hate her.

“And if you love her. You don’t need to hate me.”

Winfrey said there was an online piece about Kate eating avocado to help with morning sickness, and another about Meghan eating avocados which said the fruit was “linked to water shortages, illegal deforestation and environmental devastation”.

Meghan replied: “That’s a really loaded piece of toast.”

She added: “You have to laugh at a certain point because it’s just ridiculous.”

Asked if she thinks there was a separate standard for her and Kate, and if so why, Meghan said: “I don’t know why. I can see now what layers were at play there.

“And again they really seemed to want a narrative of a hero and a villain.”