There is no question that the royal family has had its ups and downs in recent years, primarily due to Harry and Meghan’s exit from royal life and the bombshell accusations that came with it. Even though Harry attended his father’s coronation, the future of the Sussexes’ relationship with their fellow royals is seriously in doubt.
Harry and Meghan lashed out at other royals in interviews, their Netflix series, and, of course, through the Duke’s book, which was released earlier this year. While that was one thing, the couple additionally decided to give their children royal titles in March.
furious with his son when the accusations against him – and especially his wife, Queen Camilla – were laid out by Harry. But according to a royal expert, Charles has only himself to blame – and he apparently made one “terrible mistake” that changed everything.
The feud between the royals and Harry and Meghan reached its peak when Harry released his book, Spare, earlier this year. The Duke lashed out at almost every one of his senior royal family members, referring to his stepmother Camilla as a “wicked stepmother” and even giving a detailed insight into one of the biggest fights of his life.
It happened in 2019 at his London home, where Harry wrote that he and William had a physical confrontation. The Duke claimed William had called his wife, Meghan, “abrasive,” “rude,” and “difficult,” something Harry called “parrot the press narrative.”
It escalated, and Harry described how William “grabbed me by the collar, ripping my necklace, and … knocked me to the floor.”
“He set down the water, called me another name, then came at me. It all happened so fast. So very fast. He grabbed me by the collar, ripping my necklace, and he knocked me to the floor. I landed on the dog’s bowl, which cracked under my back, the pieces cutting into me. I lay there for a moment, dazed, then got to my feet and told him to get out,” Harry wrote.
The Duke then described how William urged him to hit back, describing their fights as children. When Harry refused, the future king left, before returning later “looking regretful, and apologized.” Harry said he sustained visible injuries on his back.
The royal family has not commented on the shocking claim – along with everything else Harry and Meghan have said. It’s safe to say it will most likely stay that way.
At the time, King Charles wasn’t there. But a few years later, following Prince Philip’s funeral in 2021, Harry, William, and Charles had a meeting at Frogmore Cottage that didn’t end well.
In Spare, Harry wrote that his family members had “come for a fight” as they tried to reconcile with him. The least they wanted, the Duke said, was to understand why they had left the royal family in the first place.
“I tried to explain my side of things. I wasn’t at my best. For starters. I was still nervous, fighting to keep my emotions in check, while also striving to be succinct and precise,” Harry wrote. “More, I’d vowed not to let this encounter devolve into another argument. But I quickly discovered that it wasn’t up to me.”
But, as previously mentioned, it didn’t end well. Before the main subject was to be discussed – when King Charles asked about the weather and the funeral – Harry felt he was cut off whenever he wanted to speak. Eventually, the two brothers got “heated,” and their father had to step in.
Harry recalled Charles “looking up at our flushed faces,” saying, “please, boys, don’t make my final years a misery.”
One can imagine that King Charles was furious about what Harry revealed – and accused them of – in his book. Earlier this year, Harry and Meghan decided to give their children, Archie and Lilibet, the royal titles of prince and princess, saying it was their “birthright.” Even though they had left royal life, the couple still had their UK home of Frogmore Cottage to return to. But that quickly changed as King Charles decided to evict them.
The couple had renovated the royal estate for around $3 million. But when they stepped down from their royal roles, Harry and Meghan agreed to pay back the entire price tag to UK taxpayers. However, when visiting, they could still keep Frogmore Cottage as their UK base.
Royal expert claims King Charles have made a “huge mistake” with Harry & Meghan
“But at the moment, she doesn’t want the children to see their grandfather, as she feels he is to blame for them having to leave the Royal Family. It will probably be a decision that she makes quite quickly and spontaneously, but once she has made that decision, Harry will go along with what she wants,” he added.
When Harry and Meghan announced their departure from royal life, the late-Queen Elizabeth II showed her support by saying, “My family and I are entirely supportive of Harry and Meghan’s desire to create a new life as a young family.”
Even though they were cut off from several things they were entitled to before they left, the fact that their children could be titled prince and princess was, for example, still an option. King Charles didn’t do anything to make his son and daughter-in-law “less royal” when he took the reins last year. Though, according to royal expert and author Tom Bower, it was a huge mistake that the king didn’t act once the accusations were made against him.
Bower, author of Revenge: Meghan, Harry, and the War Between the Windsors says the events that followed the Sussexes’ exit from the royal family have negatively impacted the monarchy. However, the fact that Charles hasn’t acted has made it more dramatic than it had to be – and to keep them in the loop was a bad idea.