Royal Rift Continues: Prince Harry Will Not Meet King Charles During UK Visit
Despite his return to the United Kingdom, Prince Harry reportedly will not meet with his father, King Charles, amid ongoing tensions within the royal family. The relationship between the two royals has been fraught since Prince Harry and his wife, Meghan Markle, stepped back from their roles as senior working royals in 2020, via BBC.
Prince Harry is in London to mark the tenth anniversary of the Invictus Games, an event close to his heart. However, according to HELLO!, a packed royal schedule will prevent King Charles from seeing his son during this visit. “Due to His Majesty’s full programme”, the King will not be available, leaving the father and son duo unable to reconcile their differences at this time.
Responding to the situation, a representative for Prince Harry expressed understanding of the King’s commitments, telling Bazaar, “The Duke, of course, is understanding of his father’s diary of commitments and various other priorities and hopes to see him soon.”
This visit follows a brief interaction earlier this year when Harry visited the King after a sudden cancer diagnosis was revealed. Reports suggested that during this visit, Prince Harry had a short meeting with both King Charles and Queen Camilla, lasting only 40 minutes.
The Duke of Sussex has not been in England since attending the King’s coronation in May 2023. The decision to relocate to the United States in 2020 has added both physical and emotional distance between Harry and the royal family. This move has significantly strained his relationship with his father and limited interactions between his children and their grandparents.
A source close to the royal family told PEOPLE, “Hopefully [Harry] will bring the grandchildren at some point, as that would be lovely for all of them,” especially in light of the King’s health issues.
The dynamic between Harry and the royal family was further complicated by his and Meghan’s candid interview with Oprah in 2021, and the subsequent release of their Netflix docuseries and Harry’s memoir, “Spare.” These releases laid bare many personal details and grievances, leaving the King “distraught” and “angry,” as sources revealed to Us Weekly.
Despite these challenges, Harry maintains a love for his family. Speaking on Good Morning America, he shared, “Look, I love my family. The fact that I was able to get on a plane and go and see him and spend any time with him, I’m grateful for that.”
The ongoing narrative of Prince Harry and King Charles’s relationship is a saga of missed connections and unresolved issues, with each visit sparking hopes of reconciliation that remain unfulfilled. As the royal family navigates these public and personal challenges, the world watches, waiting to see if the father and son can eventually bridge the gap between them.