Five years after leaving the British royal family, Prince Harry’s relationship with his family seems to have taken a turn for the better. Recently, he secretly met with senior staff of his father King Charles III in London, and the rift between the two sides is expected to be repaired, which is regarded as a “good start”.
According to an exclusive report by “People” magazine, senior staff of Charles III and Prince Harry met secretly at the private club “Royal Over-Seas League” just a few minutes away from Charles’ official residence Clarence House on July 9. Harry’s chief of staff Meredith Maines, public relations Liam Maguire, and Charles III’s correspondence secretary Tobyn Andreae attended.
It is reported that Andreae brought a bottle of wine as a gift that day, and the atmosphere was friendly. This is the first direct meeting between senior staff of both sides, which shows that both sides intend to rebuild the communication channel.
According to sources, there was no formal agenda for this meeting, it was just a “drink party” to allow both sides to have a preliminary exchange on issues of concern to each other. An insider said: “This is a good start. It is better to have a dialogue than silence.” “Everyone wants to let go of the past and move on. Now is a good time for both sides to talk.” Although the road to reconciliation is still long, this meeting is seen as a positive signal for the two sides to resume dialogue after “breaking up” for many years.
British media reported that when Harry talked with Charlie’s staff, he did not discuss whether Harry would return to the royal family, and would avoid exchanging fire through the media.
Looking back at the disputes between Harry and the British royal family, his relationship with his father gradually deteriorated after he and Meghan announced their withdrawal from the positions of senior members of the royal family in 2020. After moving to the United States, Harry and his wife successively exposed the royal family’s black material in the 2021 Oprah interview and the 2022 Netflix documentary “Harry and Meghan”. In 2023, Harry published his memoir “Spare”, in which he accused his brother Prince William and stepmother Queen Camilla of putting a lot of pressure on him and Meghan, and even revealed that he and William had a physical conflict, shocking the outside world. This incident brought Harry’s relationship with his father to a freezing point, and it can be said that they were completely disconnected.
In addition, Harry filed a lawsuit against the British Home Office in recent years for asking for official British security issues. After losing the case in May this year, he accepted an exclusive interview with the “BBC” and said that without bodyguards, he could not bring his wife and children back to the UK. He also admitted that he wanted to reconcile with the royal family, but his father no longer spoke to him. The “Invictus Games” founded by Harry will return to the UK in 2027. It is reported that Harry has invited his father and brother and took the initiative to extend an olive branch.
However, the ice-breaking process is not easy. Charlie and William do not trust Harry and Meghan. Royal biographer Sally Bedell Smith pointed out that Charlie and William were dissatisfied with Harry and Meghan’s public statements, especially Harry’s criticism of Camilla in his memoirs, which made Charlie very angry.
Prince William’s attitude has also attracted much attention. It is reported that he was not aware of the “ice-breaking” meeting between his brother and his father’s staff, and he was also reserved about whether to reconcile with Harry, which may add variables to the entire reconciliation process. In addition, Charles III is still receiving cancer treatment, and his health condition is unknown, which also adds time pressure for the reconciliation between father and son.
It is reported that Prince Harry revealed in an exclusive interview in May that he hopes to reconcile with his family. It is meaningless to continue fighting. Life is precious. I don’t know how long my father can live.
