Megxit was a game-changer for the royal family — but how did
it affect the Cambridge kids? And will the princely brothers ever patch things up?
Following the death of Queen Elizabeth II, many wondered if the shared grief over their
beloved grandmother would spark the reunion of the fractured royal family. Of course,
this particularly related to the ongoing rift between Prince Harry and his father and brother,
the newly minted King Charles III and the Prince of Wales. As royal
historian James Hardman told People magazine following the queen's death:
"The Queen adored Harry right to the end,
and Harry adored her. I think she was one of the conduits between Windsor and California,
and it would have been one of her dearest wishes that they patch things up."
Sadly, however, it appears tensions may only be worsening. While the royal
family maintained a stiff upper lip at the queen's funeral, it appears there were major
problems bubbling just beneath the surface. Take, for instance, the reports that Harry
and Meghan were uninvited from King Charles' reception for world leaders. Before the event,
a Buckingham Palace spokesperson reiterated that the event was for working royals only, but no
indication was given as to why the Sussexes had been invited in the first place. Either way, this
snafu appears to have done little to calm tensions between the Sussexes and the rest of the royals.
And that's not all. In her brand new book, The New Royals, royal correspondent and
author Katie Nicholl argues that Harry and Meghan Markle's so-called "Megxit" placed an
unfair burden on the Prince and Princess of Wales' three young children. Discussing the
predicament facing the Prince and Princess of Wales' young children, Nicholl writes:
"For Charles and William, the situation with the Sussexes hasn't just been hurtful and
upsetting on a personal level. There have been real repercussions, particularly for William,
whose young family has been thrust into the spotlight prematurely."
Nicholl argues that, because Harry and Meghan left the royal family — and in such dramatic
fashion — the young Cambridges have been forced to make more frequent public appearances. This
has apparently been done in order to create the impression of a thriving royal family.
Case in point: the youngest of William and Kate's royal clan, Prince Louis,
who hammed it up for all the world to see at the Queen's Platinum Jubilee celebrations.
"His mother told him if he kept it up his face would stick that way,
and then as proof she pointed to Prince Charles."
And while many had a good chuckle about the raucous behavior, historian Robert Lacey
argued that Prince William most likely viewed the ordeal as anything but a laughing matter. He says:
"We've seen the children performing in front of the cameras in a way that cannot have been part
of the original plan. We know that William and Kate want to bring up their children in relative
seclusion and privacy, but the children have had to become a prominent part of the show."
Notably, Louis was absent from the queen's funeral a few months later. Nevertheless,
it seems that not all hope is lost for the royals. Some even believe Prince
Harry might eventually make his way back to the family, taking back some of his
duties and obligations and thus freeing up the young children. On the April 25th episode of
the "Sway" podcast for the New York Times, talk show host and author Tina Brown said:
"I would not be at all surprised if some kind of new charter, as it were,
with Harry is drawn up. Because I think they're going to feel they do need Harry in some way.
And he might get a bit more of what he wanted… He could be a kind of commuter royal, I guess."
Still, it looks like it would take a great deal to get everyone on board — including
Harry's big brother and first in line to the throne. Nicholl writes in The New Royals:
"He always expected Harry would be his wingman;
there was a long-term plan in place for the brothers to work together and support one
another. [...] To this day, William still cannot forgive his brother."