Why King Charles Plans To Avoid Prince Harry And Meghan

The last few years have been interesting for the British royal family, to say the very least. For a while, it seemed like everything was well because most members managed to stay out of the public eye and focus on their royal duties. But in 2020, everything changed when Prince Harry and Meghan Markle announced that they were officially stepping down from their roles. Since then, the celebrity couple has appeared on various platforms to discuss their not-so-royal experience as a part of the family.

In their infamous Oprah Winfrey interview, Meghan revealed that certain members of The Firm made racist remarks about her son, Archie. The Duchess of Sussex claimed there were "concerns and conversations about how dark his skin might be when he's born ... and what that would mean and look like," (via YouTube). The former "Suits" star also pointed out that her future child wouldn't receive a title or security. The experience was so harrowing that she even contemplated suicide.

When Meghan was still a part of the family, she reportedly wrote a letter to King Charles III, describing the unconscious bias at play. Even Harry has been outspoken about his bittersweet experience growing up with them. In 2023, he released a tell-all memoir entitled "Spare," which detailed several negative experiences with his father and other relatives. Since its release, familial tensions have been at an all-time high, while Charles has reportedly cut off communications with the couple completely. 

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An insider informed Us Weekly that while King Charles III adores his youngest son, Prince Harry, he felt blindsided by the release of "Spare." They noted, "There's no doubt he wishes to avoid Harry and Meghan until he sees some positive change on their end." Despite the rift, Harry attended his father's coronation sans Meghan Markle in May 2023. But in a controversial turn of events, he wasn't given a front-row seat beside Prince William and his family but was placed two rows back, close to the disgraced Prince Andrew. 

Harry reportedly didn't speak to his brother throughout the ceremony either. Apparently, he wasn't invited for the balcony pictures, so he headed to the airport shortly after the coronation. And while this may seem strange, many believed that Harry wouldn't attend the event because of some of the home truths he dropped in "Spare." In the book, Harry describes Charles as emotionally unavailable to the point where he couldn't even hug his son after telling him that his mother, Princess Diana, had passed away.

The Duke of Sussex also felt that his dad was involuntarily thrust into parenthood without having the essential qualities. He described how Charles wrote him letters because he could not communicate his affection verbally. However, Harry didn't shy away from discussing the good aspects of his parenting. He wrote about how his father made up games on the fly and supported Harry's mental health treatment too. 

In "Spare," Prince Harry also offered some insight into his strained relationship with his older brother, Prince William, which evidently only widened the gap between the royal family. The Duke of Sussex revealed that his brother physically attacked him when they got into a heated argument after William made negative remarks about Meghan Markle. And while the entire memoir features several startling revelations about the royal family, Harry's mention of Queen Camilla greatly annoyed King Charles III in particular. 

The prince wrote that he and William had tried to talk their father out of marrying her. As a result, Harry suggested that his father and stepmother leaked the news of his drug use to the tabloids to turn the narrative in their favor. A source shared Charles' reaction with Us Weekly: "He's angry and outraged that Harry's aired so many embarrassing and damaging assertions, and it's put him in a terrible position with [Queen Consort] Camilla." They added, "But there are so many egregious comments and revelations from Harry that his father doesn't know where to start."

As royal expert Richard Palmer told the Daily Express, "He's quite keen to heal that family rift, but it's obviously very raw and very noticeable. While he's keen to heal that rift, he hasn't met his son the last two times he's been over to the UK." Meanwhile, an official Father's Day Instagram post notably featured a photo of Charles with both of his sons.