Given Prince Harry's popularity, there are plenty of details about his life out there,
but certain stranger truths about the royal red-head have been a little bit obscured.
Here are some things you may not know about Prince Harry.
One of the most basic facts about Prince Harry isn't actually as it seems. While the royal
has always been known as Harry, that's not his legal name. According to Vogue, the royal
was christened Henry Charles Albert David — Harry is just a nickname.
Adding to the confusion is the fact that, as a member of the royal family, Prince Harry
doesn't technically have a last name. One royal biographer explained,
"He was born with a whole suite of given names, but of Wales."
After his marriage to Meghan Markle, though, Prince Harry became the Duke of Sussex — and
his name was listed on his son Archie's birth certificate as His Royal Highness Henry Charles
Albert David Duke of Sussex.
While at school, Prince Harry went by the far less conspicuous name of Harry Wales,
and Prince William used the surname as well. One of their schoolmates from Eton told The
Cut,
"It was funny though because no one gave a s--- [about titles]."
Prince Harry also used the last name Wales when he joined the military.
Princess Diana had some adorable nicknames for her sons. Prince William was called "wombat,"
which he explained to NBC was because of a family trip to Australia where wombats are
"the local animal."
Prince Harry had a decidedly more regal nickname from his mother, as royal correspondent Robert
Jobson revealed on the TV program William & Harry: Princes At War? He explained,
"She used to refer to Harry as [Good King Harry] because she thought he'd probably be
better equipped for the role in the future than William."
Princess Diana also called her younger son "my little Spencer," according to E! News.
This nickname was given because of his red hair which, while not a match for Princess
Diana's own blonde looks, did mark him out as a member of her family, the Spencers.
"One of her mottos to me was, you can be as naughty as you want, just don't get caught."
While Princess Diana clearly appreciated her son being born with the same hair color as
that of her siblings, royal biographer Andrew Morton wrote in Diana: Her True Story that
Prince Charles was less pleased with the shade.
Prince Harry was known for being a bit reckless in his younger years. While acting up is expected
of teenagers, Prince Harry's actions were in the public eye and therefore made headlines.
His father, Prince Charles, tried to nip some of his more irresponsible behavior in the
bud by sending him to rehab — but only for a day.
Reports that Prince Harry was smoking marijuana and drinking underage circulated when the
royal was a teenager. Prince Charles was said to be furious about the rumored activities,
and had Prince Harry go to a rehab facility when he was 17 so that he could speak to recovering
addicts and learn from their experiences.
While Prince Harry may have stopped smoking marijuana after that, it would be years until
he gave up cigarettes. A source told People magazine that it wasn't until 2018 that his
then-fiancée helped him kick that vice.
A lot of people think that Prince Harry isn't actually the biological son of Prince Charles,
but that he's actually the son of James Hewitt. On the surface, the theory makes sense. Princess
Diana did admit to having an affair with Hewitt, but there's just one glaring problem with
the idea that he's Prince Harry's biological dad — Princess Diana didn't actually meet
Hewitt until several years after Prince Harry was born.
Some people seem to think that Prince Harry's crimson locks are proof that Prince Charles
isn't his biological dad, and Hewitt just so happens to have red hair. However, Hewitt
has publicly denied the claims. On Australia's Sunday Night in 2017, he said,
"It sells papers. It's worse for [Harry], probably, poor chap."
In reality, Prince Harry's hair comes from his mother's side of the family. If you're
still not convinced, there's photographic evidence that shows that Prince Harry looks
quite a bit like his grandfather, Prince Philip, when he was younger. Certain photos of Prince
Charles in his younger years also bear a compelling resemblance to Prince Harry.
Prince Harry has long been known for his commitment to the environment. In the 2018 documentary
Prince, Son and Heir: Charles at 70, Prince Harry revealed that Markle gives him a hard
time for inheriting his father's trait of being, quote, "a stickler for turning lights
off." The royal's eco-conscious attitude is also behind the decision he and his wife have
made to only have two children so as not to overwhelm the planet, as he told Vogue the
following year.
"No one can deny science. Otherwise we live in a very very troubling world."
Prince Harry's passion for saving the planet can be traced back to his youth, and it's
something that his classmates often teased him for. He said in the documentary,
"I used to get taken the mickey out of at school for just picking up rubbish."
This is another habit Prince Harry got from his father, as Prince Charles would often
take his sons on walks in nature. These apparently weren't just leisurely strolls through the
woods, however; as Prince William said, they were going out with him for the sake of picking
up litter.
Prince Harry was reportedly never a very good student, and after graduating from Eton, he
decided to take a gap year. The royal's academic record was not strong. Tatler noted that his
two A-Levels consisted of a respectable B in Art, but only a D in Geography. In comparison,
Prince William earned three A-Levels, with his lowest grade being a C in Biology.
Rather than attend university, Prince Harry decided to enter the military following his
gap year. According to his biography on the royal family's website, in 2005 he began training
at the elite Royal Military Academy Sandhurst. After the 44-week course, Prince Harry began
his military career as an officer in the British army.
Prince Harry may not have demonstrated any particular academic prowess, but he flourished
in the military. By 2008, he'd been promoted to lieutenant and eventually rose to captain,
according to The Telegraph. The royal left the military in 2015 after a decade of service,
which included two tours in Afghanistan.
Prince Harry is quite the adventurer, and his travels have even taken him to the South
Pole, according to the BBC. The royal made the trek in 2013 as part of a trip organized
by "Walking With The Wounded," a charity benefiting injured military veterans. The trip was originally
planned as a challenge between a team from the U.K., one from the U.S., and a Canadian-Australian
team, but the race was eliminated due to "difficult terrain," and they all ended up completing
the journey together.
Prince Harry had also participated in a 2011 expedition to the North Pole, but wasn't able
to complete the journey as it overlapped with Prince William's wedding to Kate Middleton.
Prince Harry didn't just go to the South Pole for the sake of adventure: he was also in
charge of designing outdoor toilets. Actor Dominic West, who also participated in the
trek, told People magazine that Harry's designs were incredible and intricate, with the royal
adding an artistic flair to his work.
Rather than simply digging a hole, West explained that Prince Harry's makeshift restrooms had,
quote, "a flag pole and a loo roll holder [...] surrounded by blocks of snow."
"He's quite good on the architectural side of things, like his dad probably."
Back in his single days, people all over the world dreamed of marrying Prince Harry — so
much so that it even inspired a 2014 reality show called I Wanna Marry Harry. The Bachelor-style
show was bizarre, to stay the least. Producers tried to convince a group of women that a
Harry lookalike was actually Prince Harry, and that he was looking for his true love.
While the women were naturally skeptical that Prince Harry was starring on a dating show,
sinister details about the show that later came out revealed how so many of them were
tricked. The show's winner, Kimberly Birch, told Splinter that the producers went so far
as to bring a fake therapist on set to reassure the contestants who were saying it wasn't
him.
"When you first got on the show there was no mention of the guy being Prince Harry.
They sort of just led us to believe it was someone famous."
Another contestant, Meghan Ramsey Jones, told Cosmopolitan that she was pretty sure the
lookalike wasn't Prince Harry, but ended up "second-guessing" herself. She explained,
"You're sleep-deprived, you have no cell phone, no TV, no internet. [...] Nothing [else] to
focus on. So there were definitely times when I wondered."
If you ever get a Facebook friend request from Prince Harry, it's almost certainly not
going to be the real Prince Harry. If someone named Spike Wells sends one, however, you
may have discovered the royal's secret profile. Prince Harry has reportedly had more than
one such secret social media profile over the years, according to Harper's Bazaar.
Aside from the Spike Wells Facebook profile — which is now deactivated — Prince Harry
has also been on Instagram under a handle with the name "Spikey" in it, and used it
to stay in touch with Meghan Markle in the early days of their relationship. The authors
of Finding Freedom explained,
"Spikey came from [...] 'Spike' [which] was a nickname sometimes used for the prince,
particularly by Scotland Yard officers."
Meghan Markle may be the most famous actress in the royal family, but she's not the only
talented performer among them. Her husband may not have starred on a hit show like Suits,
but he's no stranger to trodding the boards. Prince Harry appeared in school plays when
he was as young as 3 years old, portraying a goblin in a performance in 1987 and a shepherd
in a Christmas play the following year.
Prince Harry also took part in school productions during his time at Eton. According to the
Observer, as a teenager Prince Harry appeared in several plays, including an appearance
in Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing. Alas, Prince Harry's performances don't seem to
have been captured on video, so we can't be sure if his acting talent stacks up to his
wife's.
If you've ever paid close attention to the left hands of men of the royal family, you'll
notice that their ring fingers tend to be conspicuously bare. This is for a couple of
reasons. First, the tradition of men wearing wedding rings in the U.K. is a fairly new
one, and it's a practice that has yet to take hold among the country's aristocracy, as one
royal expert told Town & Country.
While Prince Charles often wears a wedding band on his left pinky finger, other notable
royals have opted not to, such as Prince William and Prince Philip. David Cameron, a former
prime minister of the United Kingdom, also hasn't been known to wear a wedding ring.
While royals who do wear wedding bands traditionally have them custom made from Queen Elizabeth's
private store of Welsh gold, Prince Harry's ring was constructed from platinum, marking
a further break from royal tradition.
Princess Diana's untimely passing was one of the most traumatic events of young Prince
Harry's life, and the scrutiny that surrounded his famous mother has continued to inform
how he deals with the press and public to this day.
While no material items could have taken away the pain of losing his mother at such a young
age, Prince Harry did inherit an impressive fortune from Princess Diana — including
some pretty surprising items. Among the things bequeathed to Prince Harry were quite a bit
of money and a "keepsake" from her jewelry collection. Reader's Digest noted that Prince
Harry chose Princess Diana's iconic sapphire engagement ring, although he later gave it
to Prince William to use for his own marriage proposal to Kate Middleton.
One of the more unusual things Prince Harry received from his mother after her passing
was her wedding dress. He inherited the frock along with his brother, but it was held as
part of her "residuary estate" until Prince Harry turned 30. The dress is more than a
keepsake — it's also a valuable piece of royal memorabilia, and not just because of
its historical significance – Brides magazine reported that the dress cost roughly $115,000.
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