Much ado about nothing, or a royal rumble that would make professional wrestling jealous?
Has the future King of England been pre-flexing his reign, or is this just brothers being
brothers?
Either way, we're taking a stab at the truth behind Prince William and Prince Harry's feud.
Prince William gave relationship advice
Royal expert Katie Nicholl believes that Prince William questioned the speed at which Prince
Harry and Meghan Markle got engaged, then married, which took less than two years.
Not surprisingly, Harry allegedly didn't take too well to William's remarks.
Nicholl said in the TLC documentary Kate V. Meghan: Princesses At War:
"William was quite concerned that the relationship had moved so quickly.
And being close to Harry, you know, probably the only person close enough to say to Harry,
'This seems to be moving quickly.
Are you sure?'
And I think what was meant as well-intended brotherly advice just riled Harry."
Nicholl added that Harry is hugely protective of Meghan, leading him to take William's questioning
of his relationship with the former Suits star personally.
Hard feelings pre-wedding
The Sun alleged that when Meghan was choosing a tiara for her wedding, Queen Elizabeth nixed
her first choice.
Harry reportedly reacted by yelling, quote, "What Meghan wants, Meghan gets!"
That led to an argument with the Queen, who asserted her dominance over her fiery grandson.
A source told The Sun:
"There was a very heated exchange that prompted the Queen to speak to Harry.
She said, 'Meghan cannot have whatever she wants.
She gets what tiara she's given by me.'"
Meghan reportedly also made Kate cry during a fitting for Princess Charlotte ahead of
the wedding, with insiders blaming the incident on not just Meghan's alleged demands, but
also Kate's hormones, as she had just given birth to Prince Louis.
“The future queen of England was in tears over what Meghan has said to her.”
Prince Harry wants to be his own man
Royal expert Katie Nicholl told Fox News that Harry and Meghan moving out of Kensington
Palace is actually good for the brothers, as it will allow Harry to go from "the spare"
heir to being his own man.
Nicholl said:
"Harry will have more freedom… it's not easy being the spare.
Harry has not had a role carved out and predetermined for him the way that William does as a future
king.
And so Harry has had to find that role for himself.
I think he's done a remarkable job at doing that and he has always had his brother's support."
She added that Meghan did play a role in the brothers' distance, but it wasn't her alleged
diva antics, as most people think.
Nicholl stated:
"I think it was always going to be a case of Harry wanting to branch out on his own
when he finally got married, and with Meghan, he found a strong, confident, capable woman.”
Sussex vs. Cambridge
A report released in April 2019 claimed that William wanted Harry and Meghan to do more
work with the royal commonwealth, simply to get them out of the palace and away from him.
A source told The Sunday Times:
"In some ways it would suit William to get his brother out of the country for a few years
and Meghan as far away as possible."
The insider said this was the main motivation for Meghan and Harry to move to Frogmore Cottage
in Windsor and away from Kensington Palace.
The insider stated:
"There are discussions in palace circles about how do we harness Harry and Meghan and this
tremendous global attention they get.
People are telling William, 'Don't worry.
Your influence will grow and Harry's will fade.'
This is peak Harry."
Babies dragged into it
Royal watchers suspected that the Sussexes were trying to steal the spotlight from the
Cambridges when at the same time William and Kate released photos of Prince Louis for his
first birthday, Harry and Meghan posted photos of a trip they took to Africa for Earth Day.
Royal author Phil Dampier told The Sun:
"It starts to look like Harry and Meghan are in competition and are out to steal Louis'
thunder.
It isn't like Harry and Meghan didn't know it was Louis's birthday.
They have known since he was born last year!”
Meghan and Harry did, however, leave Prince Louis a sweet Instagram comment for his birthday,
writing from their joint @SussexRoyal account:
"Happy Birthday Louis!
Sending lots of love from both of us."
Supposedly reconciled
A source told the Daily Mail in April 2019 that William and Harry had put their issues
behind them, noting that Harry leaving Kensington Palace, both personally and professionally,
helped in their reconciliation.
The source said:
"Finalizing plans on their future paths and roles did make things easier.
[...] They are in regular contact, which is the main thing."
And as much as the media liked to pit Kate and Meghan against one another, at least one
report said it was Kate who healed the chasm between the brothers.
The Duchess and Harry have developed a very close bond over the years.
A source told The Mirror:
"Kate is acutely aware of the importance of William and Harry getting along [...] Harry
has acted as counsel to his brother throughout William and Kate's more turbulent years, and
the three of them had gone on to form the most tremendous partnership."
They grew apart
In October 2019, Harry confessed in the ITV documentary Harry & Meghan: an African Journey
that he and William weren't as close as they once were.
Harry stated:
“We’re on different paths at the moment, but I will always there for him as I know
he’ll always be there for me.
We don’t see each other as much as we used to, but, you know, I love him dearly.”
Whatever the emotional distance between them, there was apparently an attempt to add more
physical distance someday: After a report in April 2019 suggested that William wanted
to ship Harry and Meghan off to Africa and away from him and Kate, Harry told ITV he
had no immediate plans on moving to the continent anytime soon.
Harry said specifically of South Africa:
"It's a very hard place to live when you know what's going on.
And then you're sort of, again, slightly disconnected from it."
Concerned for Harry
After the ITV documentary Harry & Meghan: an African Journey aired, William wasn't thrilled.
A palace source told the BBC that Harry and Meghan were in a fragile place and that William
was worried about them.
However, an insider also claimed that William was livid that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex
aired dirty laundry in public.
BBC royal correspondent Jonny Dymond alleged that the rest of the royals weren't thrilled
about the ITV interviews, but that Harry and Meghan clearly felt now was the time that
they wanted to clear the air.
He also stated that Harry and William had opposite approaches to the press, with William
being warm and inviting, while Harry is still furious over their treatment of his late mother
and wife.
“Every single time I see a camera, every single time I hear a click, every single time
I see a flash, it takes me straight back.”
Are they actually feuding?
So are they even feuding at all?
Rumors first gained traction when Harry and Meghan announced that they would be moving
to Frogmore Cottage and handling their business separately from William and Kate.
However, some sources insisted that there was never any bad blood, only that they wanted
some space from one another, both being grown, married men with families.
A source told the Daily Mail:
"The truth is that they have both just grown up [...] They are still incredibly close,
closer than most siblings, but now Harry has married and is about to become a father, so
it's a good time for him to be planning his own future."
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