Why Prince Harry is ‘hurt and disappointed’ during his visit to UK
Prince Harry's visit to the UK for the Invictus Games' anniversary lacked a family reunion, royal author shedding some light on the ongoing rift.
Prince Harry visited the UK for the Invictus Games’ 10th anniversary, but the duke didn't meet with his father, King Charles III and “archnemesis” brother, Prince William.
And now their relationship appears strained more than ever following Prince Harry’s move to California, according to a royal expert.
Katie Nicholl, a royal expert, told Entertainment Tonight, “He hasn’t got many other plans.”
“He was, of course, hoping to see his family. Possibly that’s why the trip was three days… but as we now know, there will be no family meetings.”
The royal expert went on saying, “I think certainly the fact that time hasn't been made over these three days for father and son to have some sort of meeting — when you consider their last meeting was just about 30 or 40 minutes when Harry flew all the way from California to see his father — certainly fuels that narrative of a rift.”
Since Charles’ ascension to the throne, Prince Harry’s visits to his homeland have been solo, sans his wife, Meghan Markle, or their children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet.
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King Charles 'hasn't made time to see his son', royal author surprised
Nicholl said King Charles “wants to be close to his son again and to see more of his grandchildren, who he’s barely seen since they were born.”
However, the Duke of Sussex’s revelations in various tell-alls, including the bomb-shell memoir ‘Spare’, have continued to affect his relationship with the royals.
The biographer shared, “There is a sense of surprise that he hasn't made time to see his son”.
According to Nicholl, the “fundamental issue” is the “breakdown of trust between Harry and the family.”
Before stepping down from royal duties and leaving the UK, Prince Harry was often seen at events with Charles and Prince William.
Nicholl believes, “Clearly, there are still some pretty major trust issues and concerns on Charles' part that any private meetings or conversations that he has with his son may not stay private for long.”
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Prince Harry ‘have to work really quite hard to repair’ the rift
“I think Harry's going to have to work really quite hard to repair some of that trust before he's going to get a sort of privileged audience with his father,” she pointed out.
“There is just a feeling of disappointment, certainly on Harry’s part, and genuine sadness that he hasn’t got to see his father,” Nicholl noted.
A spokesperson for Prince Harry confirmed that there would be no meeting with Charles during this UK visit due to the monarch's “full programme”, but the biographer believes that Harry hoped to see his father amidst his cancer treatment.
“When you take away the rift and who they are in terms of the royal family, they are a family, and Harry’s gone through an awful lot since finding out his father’s been diagnosed with cancer,” Nicholl said.
The duke’s concern for his “papa” is palpable, and his hope to see him during his three-day stay was unfulfilled, leaving him “rather hurt and quite disappointed.”
Despite minimal interaction with his relatives, many expected Charles’ health challenges to bridge the gap between the Sussexes and the rest of the royal family. But maybe it's not that time.
The royal author explained, “Harry has said that he had hoped that, out of the adversity of his father’s illness, he would reunify with the family. It’s clearly very much his intention,” and added, “My understanding is the king also wants to sort of rekindle his relationship with his son.”
“He loves his son. He's a very forgiving man. I think he certainly wants to move on. While time hasn't been made available on this particular trip, it'll certainly be the king's hope that he will get to see Harry and his family at some point later this year.”