Not just sympathy and tea. Prince Harry has always been among the British royal family’s happiest members, but he hasn’t always gotten along with his own kin.
The originator of the Invictus Games is the eldest child of King Charles III and the late Princess Diana. He and his older brother, Prince William, first appeared to be inseparable as children, but as they grew older, fractures started to appear in their connection.
A source informed Us Weekly in November 2019 that Harry has always felt like he is living in his brother’s shadow. Although William is the golden boy and Harry feels that he has a lot to live up to, Harry does not envy the burden that comes with being the future king of England.
When Harry and his wife, Meghan Markle, revealed their decision to step down from their royal duties in a tell-all interview with CBS in March 2021, the breach between the brothers widened. The Sussexes accused unnamed royal family members of racism during the TV special. They specifically claimed that one person had inquired about the skin tone of their son Archies before his May 2019 birth. (They have a daughter Lilibet as their second child in June 2021).
We’re very much not a racist family, the Duke of Cambridge said in response to the claims made days following the interview.
The brothers met up again for their grandfather Prince Philip’s burial one month later. Prince Philip passed away in April 2021 at the age of 99. Despite being seen together after the ceremony, a source later told Us that the couple still needed to work on their relationship.
The insider claimed at the time that they made some progress because Harry spoke to William while he was in the U.K. But neither have they buried the hatchet or come to the point when all is forgiven.
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Since Harry and Meghan made the decision to retire as full-time working royals in January 2020, there has also been tension in Harry’s relationship with his father. The strain brought up by the CBS tell-all remained after the former military pilot traveled to the U.K. for Philip’s funeral.
They didn’t talk much, a source told us in April 2021. Undoubtedly, a gaping hole between the two persists.
In September 2022, while traveling abroad with Meghan, Harry visited Balmoral, Scotland, in response to Queen Elizabeth II’s deteriorating health, but he arrived too late to say farewell. Charles and Camilla also paid a visit to the monarch, who passed away at the age of 96.
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The king made a point of mentioning Harry and Meghan in his inauguration speech one day after Elizabeth passed away, at the same time that he named Camilla Queen Consort and gave William and Kate new titles. Charles expressed Harry and Meghan’s affection in an unexpected way as they continued to build their lives abroad, he said at the time.