Beyonce and Meghan Markle

Beyonce wasn’t the first choice to appear on the cover of U.S. Vogue‘s September issue — the first choice was Duchess Meghan of Sussex.

Friends say Meghan Markle would’ve killed to be on the cover of Vogue, before her marriage to England’s Prince Harry in May.

“Beyoncé was not the first choice — it was Meghan Markle!” an insider told Radar Online.

“Bey had no idea that she was the second choice for the issue,” the source said.

Since marrying Prince Harry, Meghan has not spoken to reporters or posed for magazine photo shoots.

Royal etiquette prohibits Meghan from speaking to reporters about the royals or royal life.

In addition Vogue, Meghan has been offered covers by Vanity Fair and Cosmopolitan magazines — but she politely declined.

Beyonce made history as the first descendant of slaves to be featured on the cover of U.S. Vogue.

“I come from a lineage of broken male-female relationships, abuse of power, and mistrust,” she said in her Vogue interview. The mother-of-three added that she recently learned that she is descended from a slave owner who married a slave.

“I questioned what it meant and tried to put it into perspective. I now believe it’s why God blessed me with my twins. Male and female energy was able to coexist and grow in my blood for the first time.”

Beyonce’s camp issued a statement on Monday, saying Atlanta-based photographer Mitchell Tyler was not Beyonce’s choice to shoot her underwhelming cover.

Photos by Vogue, BACKGRID