Prince Harry has claimed that his father the King won’t speak to him but that he hopes for reconciliation – but one royal expert says so far, there is one thing that the Duke of Sussex has refused to do in the rift with his family
Prince Harry is refusing to take responsibility for his actions despite wanting reconciliation with his family by not doing one thing, according to a royal expert.
In a bombshell interview after losing a legal battle over his security arrangements in the UK, the Duke of Sussex dramatically claimed his father the King would not speak to him but he would like reconciliation with him and the rest of the Firm, explaining: “this, at the heart of it, is a family dispute”. The rift between the Sussexes and the royal family opened significantly following their interview with Oprah Winfrey, during which they alleged a member of the family was concerned about their son Archie’s skin tone before he was born.
Then the duke claimed in his controversial memoir, Spare, that Prince William had physically attacked him, that the King put his own interests above Harry’s and was jealous of Meghan. In his latest explosive tell-all with the BBC, he said: “Of course, some members of my family will never forgive me for writing a book. Of course, they will never forgive me for lots of things.”
And according to editor-in-chief of Majesty Magazine Ingrid Seward, any apology from Harry for his actions in the past will be a long time coming, despite his plea for reconciliation.
She exclusively told the Mirror: “By now Charles is used to Harry’s disloyalty and contradictions. But what he will not be prepared to put up with is his youngest son’s stubborn conviction that he is always right. Harry’s ego is so fragile he thinks the world is against him. He refuses to take responsibility for his actions. If he wants reconciliation, why does he still attack his family?
“If he did say sorry to his father and those he has hurt, he would be admitting he was wrong. Harry has such a weak sense of self he appears incapable of doing this. Harry’s stubbornness will almost certainly prevent him from bringing his wife and children to the UK. At least in the immediate future.
“He said he realised he had upset the ‘family’ but never once offered to apologise. The King knows this. But he also understands that under Harry’s accusatory exterior, he is extremely vulnerable.”
Elsewhere in the bombshell interview, the health of the King, who is being treated for cancer, was highlighted by Harry, who said: “And I said, life is precious. I don’t know how much longer my father has, he, he won’t speak to me because of this security stuff, but it would be nice to reconcile.”
He also said information he learned during the legal process led him to discover “some people want history to repeat itself”, in an apparent reference to the death of his mother Diana, Princess of Wales. And speaking out so publicly about this is why the King has not been speaking to his youngest son, according to royal biographer Ingrid, even if it might be painful for him.
She added: “As King, Charles needs total trust. He is head of state and monarch and that has to come first as Charles vowed at his Coronation. He will be very sad it has come to this. But if he can’t trust Harry, he has to avoid him until such time things change. If they ever do.”
It comes as fellow expert, the former BBC royal correspondent Jennie Bond also told The Mirror how Harry’s “barely controlled emotion” was in stark contrast to how King Charles publicly reached out to the Duke and Duchess of Sussex following the death of Queen Elizabeth II in 2022.
“Imagine the scene: King Charles, presumably having been told that his younger son had given a TV interview, tunes into the BBC to hear Harry accuse him of ‘not caring’ about his safety. He hears that the establishment, and by implication the royal family, tried to imprison Harry and his wife and children, allowing their security to be downgraded in order to force them to stay in the UK.”
“And he sees Harry talk about ‘some people wanting history to repeat itself’ – a reference, it would seem, to his mother’s security arrangements when she was killed in a car crash.
“Contrast this with the King’s very first broadcast the day after the late Queen died, in which he made a specific point of expressing his love for Harry and Meghan ‘as they continue to build their lives overseas.'”
Speaking of Prince Harry’s manner in the interview, Jennie continued: “The words that Harry used about losing his court case: that he was ‘devastated, gutted and surprised’ could well be the exact words that King Charles might echo about this latest bombshell interview.”