Any Chance of a Harry, Royal Family Reconciliation Is Reportedly Gone: ‘Nail in the Coffin’
The last shreds of hope Prince Harry may someday reconcile with the British royal family are seemingly gone. An insider says what unfolded during the Duke of Sussex’s few days in London, England, ahead of his and Meghan Markle’s trip to Nigeria made that clear. Not only did King Charles III and Harry not meet, but his father gave Prince William a meaningful job.
The royal family reminded Harry he’s an ‘outsider’ while dashing any reconciliation hopes
After announcing the ceremony at the start of Harry’s U.K. visit, King Charles officially handed over the role of Colonel-in-Chief of the Army Air Corps, the regiment Harry served in, to his brother.
According to an insider, it marked the “final nail in the coffin” of a potential reconciliation. “Harry has been stripped of security, stripped of his HRH title, denied a meeting with his father,” they told The Daily Beast. “And now his brother—who loathes him—is being made head of his old regiment.”
Although Harry wasn’t “deliberately humiliated” while in London, “his lack of significance as a member of the royal family was highlighted.”
“It’s notable that the king didn’t send a message of support for Harry’s celebration,” they explained. “And even more notable that he found time to meet David Beckham but not his own son.”
Despite William’s appointment as Head of the Army Air Corps had already been announced previously, it was the timing that really did it. “The timing of the handover is the final nail in the coffin,” the insider said. “The message that he is now just another outsider could not be any clearer.”
The reconciliation message came after palace ‘mudslinging’ about Harry and Charles
Before the ceremony that virtually shut the door on any chance of reconciliation, there was, per the outlet, “a weekend of furious mudslinging from Charles’ camp.”
A royal source told the London Sunday Times Harry asked to stay in a royal residence during his Invictus Games anniversary trip. King Charles agreed, the insider claimed. Ultimately, Harry chose to stay in a hotel.
It also “push[ed] back against” Harry’s statement about his dad being unable to meet him due to a “full” schedule. Harry “neither requested to see his father nor invited him to attend the service at St Paul’s.”
At that, Harry’s camp responded publicly, saying they didn’t believe the claim that the king’s office never received a meeting request.
“A charitable explanation could be that Harry sent an informal request direct[ly] to his dad. Rather than going through the formal channels, which got missed,” a friend of William and Kate Middleton’s said. “But it doesn’t really add up.”
“I hate to say it, but it feels a bit like the Palace gaslighting Harry. Because the simple facts are everyone knew Harry was here last week and wanted to see Charles.” (Harry talked about wanting to see his family more back in February.)
“Charles is very aware of how William feels about the whole Harry situation,” they said. “And he has to respect his position because he is the Prince of Wales. So a fudge that it was all down to a cock-up could suit everybody.”
If the message wasn’t clear, it certainly became clear when William and King Charles presented a “striking and overt statement of unity.”
“It was hard to miss the message: Here is the future of the monarchy, not in Nigeria or Montecito,” per the outlet.
King Charles had the chance to shoutout Harry at the ceremony and didn’t
The king didn’t mention his youngest son at the May 13 ceremony. In doing so, he missed an opportunity to get some “points” back, as a commentator put it.
He even unveiled a plaque for an Apache—the helicopter Harry flew while in the military—headed for a museum. But he didn’t touch on his youngest son’s connection to the regiment or the Army Air Corps. Instead, King Charles focused on praising William.
