In the face of their grandmother's death, Princes William and Harry have come together
to mourn.
But the tension and anger that has troubled them for years is far from resolved.
As soon as Queen Elizabeth II was announced to be in ill health on the morning of September
8, her entire extended family flocked to her side at Balmoral Castle in Scotland.
They remained with her until her death later that day.
This included everyone from the queen's four children to her numerous grandchildren — the
highest profile of whom are arguably the two sons of the new King Charles III: Princes
William and Harry.
"I've got full confidence in what he does and he knows what he's doing and he's very
good at what his job is."
The two brothers have been involved in a rather noteworthy feud for a few years now, beginning
around 2018 when Harry married American actor Meghan Markle.
However, shortly after, Harry and Meghan began their well-publicized exit from official royal
family duties and are now living in the United States.
As a result, William and Harry's relationship began to undergo a great deal of tension,
which was exacerbated by the likes of Harry and Meghan's partnership with Netflix and
their subsequent March 2021 Oprah interview.
This culminated most recently at their grandmother's Platinum Jubilee in June, during which their
relationship was said to be "frosty," per Page Six.
Now, the two brothers have reunited at Balmoral for the first time since the Jubilee, and
— unfortunately for those hoping for a joyous reunion — it's quite clear that the state
of their relationship has not exactly healed in the months since.
Although the death of Queen Elizabeth II may have allowed for one of the few occasions
for the entire royal family to get together — and perhaps mend fences – this was not
exactly what happened.
A source close to the royal family told Us Weekly,
"There was fractional engagement between William and Harry at Balmoral.
While the brothers are keeping it civil and acting like adults as they mourn the queen’s
death, they’ve by no means turned the page and made amends."
The source added that the mood around the castle was "somber all around."
Harry left Balmoral early the next day and is expected to remain in Windsor until the
funeral, per The Guardian.
Although it was initially expected that Meghan would come to Balmoral Castle with her husband,
it was later reported that she would not.
This is not that unusual, however, as William's wife Kate did not attend either.
A BBC royal correspondent did speculate, however, that Meghan, quote, "might not be terribly
warmly welcomed," and hence may not have been invited.
Furthermore, William and Harry's relationship was still at "rock bottom" at the time of
the Jubilee.
A source told the Daily Mail that William felt "really, really angry about what his
brother has done."
The source added,
"He believes there are things you just don't do.
And Harry has 100 percent crossed that line."
There have been other incidents since the Platinum Jubilee that may have contributed
to the hostility between Princes William and Harry.
At the time, another source close to the family told Us Weekly that the brothers' relationship
is "doomed," and "irreparable."
That source explained,
"[William] doesn't know who [Harry] is anymore and the trust between them is strained.
[...] They’ll never recover from the damage that has been done."
Things were not helped by Harry's announcement of a personal memoir, which is expected to
take a deeper look into the royal family.
A source told The U.K.
Sun in early September that the royal family — and William in particular — intended
to avoid seeing Harry and Meghan until the release of the memoir, as William did not
trust that any of their conversations wouldn't be used in the book.
Angela Levin, a royal biographer, told the outlet,
"They have lost their chance of being trusted as the chance is they will use any conversation."
Of course, no one knew at the time that they would end up meeting to say goodbye to their
grandmother just a few days later.
Things seem to be less acrimonious with Harry and his father, however.
In his first public address as King on Friday, Charles III gave a warm shoutout to his son
and daughter-in-law.
"...my love for Harry and Meghan as they continue to build their lives overseas."