From strained family relationships to a potential bombshell of a tell-all,
there is no shortage of drama between Harry and the rest of the royal family.
Though being a member of the royal family might seem like the ultimate charmed life,
that wasn't exactly the case for Prince William and Prince Harry. According to
an insider who spoke to Us Weekly, there were issues between the brothers even before the pair
fell out after Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's break from the royal family. The source said,
"There's always been a part of Harry that felt like he was living in his brother's
shadow. He doesn't envy the responsibility that comes with being the future king of England."
Still, the prince feels that he and Prince William will always be connected. In the documentary
Harry & Meghan: An African Journey, Harry was clear about his relationship with his brother.
"We're brothers, we'll always be brothers."
Likewise, it would appear that the Prince of Wales feels similarly. According to Us Weekly, William
still cares deeply for his brother and hopes that things between them will improve. Additionally,
Katie Nicholl, author of Harry & Meghan: Life, Loss, and Love, said that things between the
royal brothers have improved since their rift. However, repairing their relationship isn't
going to be a quick fix and will likely involve some tension. Nicholl told Cosmopolitan.com:
"I don't know that things will ever be the way they were between William and Harry."
The world was shocked after Prince Harry and Meghan Markle stepped back from their
royal duties. Still, according to People, this seemingly unexpected circumstance was
actually a long time coming. In October of 2019, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex gave
their fans a hint that they wanted time away from royal life when they declared
they were taking six weeks off to focus on quality family time. Then on January 8,
2020, the couple's official instagram account announced a significant change. The post declared:
"After many months of reflection and internal discussions,
we have chosen to make a transition this year."
The pair then revealed they would no longer be partaking in royal duties.
Soon after their announcement, Queen Elizabeth II gave an unexpected statement reflecting on
the prince's choice to step away from the royal family. Although she noted
that Harry and Meghan's decision would change the family's future,
the late queen showed him full support. The queen stated:
"My family and I are entirely supportive of Harry
and Meghan's desire to create a new life as a young family."
While Queen Elizabeth did admit that the royal family would have preferred
that Prince Harry and Markle remained active as members of the royal family,
she said their decision would be respected.
Not long after the news broke that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle were stepping back
from royal duties, the pair decided to share their experiences during a sit-down chat. Though their
bombshell interview only furthered the wedge between the couple and the rest of the royal
family, it doesn't seem like the pair has any regrets about their decision. On the contrary,
according to an insider via Us Weekly, Prince Harry and Markle
found their interview to be a positive experience. The source told the outlet:
"Meghan and Harry both finally felt free after the interview aired. They felt that they had been
holding all of this inside for so many years and now it's finally off of their chests."
Among other things, the pair dropped some seriously shocking statements
during the interview. They claimed that their decision to stop working
as full-time royals was a reflection of the lack of support that they felt from
the rest of the family. The couple also made another bombshell claim regarding their son,
Archie. Though the pair didn't say who made the comment, they said that a family member voiced
concern about his skin color by questioning how dark he'd be before he was even born.
With plenty of royal bombshells dropped in Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's interview
with Oprah Winfrey, it's no surprise that the royal family was seriously upset by the
couple's claims. Just days after the Duke and Duchess of Sussex's tell-all chat was released,
Prince William responded to the allegations made by his brother and sister-in-law.
More recently, Marie Claire stated that the interviews and tell-alls
were causing continued tension between the Duke and Duchess of Sussex and the
royal family. According to a top adviser for the family,
"[E]veryone is frightened to be around [Prince Harry and Meghan
Markle]. Anything you say might end up on the cover of an American magazine."
The royal family advisor added that as a result of Markle's August 2022
interview with The Cut, the queen, the former Prince of Wales, Prince William,
Kate Middleton, and senior palace staff were unwilling to meet with the couple.
In 2021, the Duke of Sussex met up with James Corden for "An Afternoon
with Prince Harry & James Corden." During the interview, plenty of the prince's feelings were
revealed. During the interview, Prince Harry and Corden toured Los Angeles via an open-top bus,
where The Late Late Show host provided the royal family member with tea and
crumpets. Not long into the interview, the conversation switched to focus on some of
the more significant issues, like Prince Harry's choice to step away from royal life.
"We all know what the British press can be like,
and it was destroying my mental health. I was like, 'this is toxic.'"
Prince Harry added, that he decided it would be best for his wife and child if he removed
them from the situation. The Duke of Sussex also touched on the late queen's choice to refuse the
couple from taking on a hybrid, part-time royal role. According to the prince, despite his status
change from being a full-time working royal, he is still very much dedicated to public service.
"I will never walk away. I will always be contributing."
On a lighter note, the prince also reflected on his relationship with his wife and his son Archie,
as well his feelings regarding the Netflix series The Crown:
"I am way more comfortable with 'The Crown,' than I am seeing the stories
written about my family, or my wife or myself."
After the drama between the Duke and Duchess of Sussex and the rest of the royal family,
it's no shocker that these issues led to tension between Prince Harry and his brother,
the Prince of Wales. Still, despite their differences, the royal brothers reunited
after the passing of their grandfather, Prince Philip, in April of 2021.
Body language expert Elaine Swann stated that the brothers' body language during the late royal's
funeral was a good sign for Prince Harry and Prince William's relationship. The royal siblings
even made headlines after they were spotted chatting alongside the Prince of Wales' wife,
Kate Middleton. In an observation of the pair's interactions, Swann told Us Weekly:
"William did his best to open his body language toward his brother."
She additionally noted that losing a mutual loved one could be the push the siblings needed to fix
their relationship. Not long after the funeral of Prince Philip, the royal duo reunited again, this
time in July of 2021, to unveil a statue honoring their late mother. An insider told Us Weekly:
"[While] they didn't mend the bond at the funeral. [...] both brothers are
ready to move past the rift and have a good relationship again."
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex's choice to stop being working royals did not sit well with King
Charles III — and neither did the pair's decision to air their family issues on television. So,
it's no surprise that Prince Harry's relationship with his father is strained due to the conflict.
Still, according to Us Weekly, by December of 2021, the king and his youngest son were
attempting to fix their relationship issues. An insider told the outlet that though the
royal father and son were communicating, they weren't speaking too frequently,
especially after the couple's tell-all interview. The source told Us Weekly:
"There [are] still a lot of issues, the two of them need to work out and move forward."
However, not long after that, the king publicly made a supportive statement about his son's work
to halt global warming via a January 2022 issue of Newsweek. Charles said in the statement:
"My younger son, Harry, has passionately highlighted the impact of climate change."
Still, despite King Charles III's positive feedback regarding his son's work,
it seems that things between the two may never be the same. During an interview
with The Cut in August 2022, Meghan Markle stated that the couple's decisions regarding
the prince's family had permanently changed things. Meghan told The Cut:
"Harry said to me, 'I lost my dad in this process.'"
The loss of a loved one can affect a family in various ways. However,
feelings and grief can be even more complicated when your dearly departed family member was
the queen. In the case of the royal family, it would appear that this loss made Prince William
reevaluate his relationship with his brother and sister-in-law. According to Us Weekly,
the Prince of Wales arranged for Prince Harry and Meghan Markle to return to
the U.K. to pay their respects to the late monarch. A source revealed to the outlet:
"William invited Harry and Meghan to join them."
Similarly, the passing of his grandmother also led Prince
Harry to release a public statement on her on the Archewell website. The tribute reads,
"In loving memory of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II 1926-2022."
Similarly, in a video obtained by The Sun,
the Duke of Sussex can be seen telling mourners that life is a little less
bright without his grandma. While pointing at Windsor Castle, Harry told well-wishers:
"It's a lonely place up there now without her,"
It would appear that the loss of the queen affected King Charles III's feelings for
his son and daughter-in-law as well. Just one day after Queen Elizabeth II's death,
the new monarch declared his love for the couple during his inaugural speech, saying,
"I want to also express my love for Harry and Meghan as they
continue to build their lives overseas." It would seem that things between the Duke
and Duchess of Sussex and the rest of the royal family are beginning to improve since
the Queen's passing. However, Prince Harry's upcoming memoir is definitely causing some
roadblocks. The issue of the prince's book initially began in late July of 2021 when
Prince Harry announced that he was writing a memoir set to be released in 2022. Harry stated:
"I'm writing this not as the prince I was born but as the man I have become."
In response, his family wasn't too pleased by the idea of another tell-all, with a source stating
that the royal family was worried about what the Duke of Sussex planned to say in his book.
More recently, Edinburgh News reported that royal expert and historian Rafe Heydel-Mankoo said
that Prince Harry had been asked to reconsider publishing his book in light of the Queen's death.
While appearing on GB News, the royal expert noted the royal family was hoping that the Queen's
passing would make Prince Harry change his mind about releasing a memoir. Heydel-Mankoo added,
"We do know obviously that this book's going to have to be rewritten somewhat
because of the latest events, but I think it will
go a long way to healing that rift if it was put on the shelf permanently."
However, according to Perth Now, Prince Harry is adamant that his book be published as scheduled.