Why King Charles Might Never Forgive Prince Harry

King Charles III and Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, have been embroiled in a years-long royal feud that has irrevocably altered their relationship for the worse. Tensions between the father and son duo worsened considerably in 2020, when Harry and his wife Meghan Markle, the Duchess of Sussex, stepped down as working members of the royal family. In their 2021 Netflix docuseries "Harry & Meghan," the prince recalled a truly nerve-wracking meeting with his father and brother, William, Prince of Wales, to discuss his future as a full-time working royal. Harry had to decide between five options that featured varying degrees of involvement, and he ultimately went with the "half in, half out" choice.

However, the rest of Harry's family was displeased by his decision. As he admitted, "It was terrifying to have my brother scream and shout at me, and my father say things that just simply weren't true, and my grandmother [Queen Elizabeth II] quietly sit there, and sort of take it all in." However, the royal defector could empathize with their anger since they were all raised to believe that the monarchy came before everything else in life.

On the other hand, Charles was reportedly furious about his son airing out their dirty laundry. In British journalist Omid Scobie's 2020 book "Finding Freedom," he wrote that the king previously had no desire to discuss his son with a living soul. However, after the docuseries aired, he labeled him "that fool," per Newsweek. Needless to say, Charles was equally infuriated by the many startling revelations in Harry's 2023 memoir "Spare."

Prince Harry cemented his royal beef with Queen Camilla in "Spare." Among other things, the royal defector claimed that his father, King Charles III, and stepmother were the brains behind the 2002 press leak that detailed his prior drug use. Harry posited that they had broken the news to make the general public see Charles as a loving father who was struggling to care for his son instead of the man who cheated on the beloved Diana, Princess of Wales. Additionally, when he spoke to Anderson Cooper for "60 Minutes," the Duke of Sussex labeled Camilla "the villain" in his parents' marriage, per TIME. 

Later, an Us Weekly insider offered some insight into the king's feelings about his son's memoir: "Charles is distraught. 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 Camilla of course now that she's been dragged into the equation." They asserted that although pretty much the entirety of "Spare" hit a nerve, Harry's shocking claims about Camilla were the most infuriating. 

Another source informed Us Weekly that the king felt compelled to patch things up with his youngest son but he was understandably hesitant to extend an olive branch since Charles feared that doing so would upset Camilla and William, Prince of Wales. Royal expert Christopher Andersen added that the king didn't want to risk fracturing his relationship with his wife and eldest son because Charles knew that he could always count on them for love and support.

During the Duke and Duchess of Sussex's 2021 tell-all interview with Oprah Winfrey, Meghan Markle confessed that some unnamed royal family members had "concerns and conversations about how dark [Archie's] skin might be when he's born," (via YouTube). Despite growing up in the royal family, Prince Harry was equally taken aback by the racist comments. At the time, a source confirmed to People that King Charles III "feels enormously let down" by the revelation. They also argued that the monarch had always tried to champion diversity and listed some of his past actions to make their case. 

The Telegraph reported that the "Suits" alum had written letters to the British ruler to detail her concerns following the dodgy incident. Although Charles engaged in a respectful back-and-forth with his daughter-in-law, she didn't feel like her issue was resolved in a satisfying manner. The royal family once again came under fire for being racist after Omid Scobie released "Endgame" in 2023. A Dutch translation of the book stated that Catherine, Princess of Wales, and Charles were the ones who asked about Archie's skin color. 

While Scobie later insisted that he hadn't named the royals in the English version of the book, some people weren't convinced it was purely a translation error, and the only two people who could defend the king and Kate Middleton remained quiet. An insider shared their feelings on the matter with The Telegraph, noting, "For the couple that talked about 'death by a thousand no comments,' the silence at this point is deafening."

During Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's Oprah interview they claimed that the royal family hadn't given them a penny since early 2020. As a result, the Duke of Sussex was left to rely on his inheritance from his late mother, Princess Diana, for essentials like the couple's security detail. In fact, Harry even professed that their life in California would have been practically impossible if it weren't for his mother's generosity. However, a Clarence House spokesperson told a very different story. 

According to them, the Sussexes had made their desire to be financially independent clear in the statement announcing their departure from the royal family. Still, King Charles III generously gave them "a substantial amount" to sustain them until they could stand on their own two feet, per The Independent. In fact, His Majesty only stopped their payments as summer 2020 rolled around. Of course, Charles wasn't exactly pleased by how his estranged son described their broken relationship in such excruciating detail in "Spare." 

In October 2023, an insider disclosed to Express that The Firm was quite angry about the contents of the memoir but Charles was seething more than the others because he didn't subscribe to the "whole idea that these difficulties should be aired in public." Additionally, in November, a confidant elaborated in an interview with the Daily Mail that, "There is undeniable anger at the anguish the King believes Harry caused the late Queen in the last years of her life."

While speaking to Oprah Winfrey in 2021, Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, revealed that his father, King Charles III, had "stopped taking [his] calls," (via Oprah Daily). The British monarch's youngest son wished that his father would have tapped into his past experiences and empathized with his feelings instead of creating more pain by ignoring him. However, royal correspondent Robert Jobson's 2023 book "Our King" offered an arguably reasonable explanation for why Charles may not be interested in talking it out.

After the Sussexes relocated to California, Harry regularly reached out to his grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II, predominantly to discuss his financial ailments. However, she felt queasy about meddling in Harry and Charles' broken relationship, so she encouraged her grandson to have it out with his father. Unfortunately, the phone calls only made their connection weaker. "Prince Charles simply stopped taking Harry's calls after his son swore at him and repeatedly asked for funds," Jobson wrote, per The Mirror.

It's safe to say that Harry's words deeply hurt Charles since a confidant affirmed to People that the father-son duo wasn't in touch at all as of November 2024. Additionally, the Duke of Sussex tried contacting his dad via letters and phone calls but his attempts ultimately proved unsuccessful. "[Harry] gets 'unavailable right now,'" they said. "His calls go unanswered. He has tried to reach out about the King's health, but those calls go unanswered too."

In November 2024, royal biographer Robert Hardman contended, in an interview with the Daily Beast, that King Charles III needed help from one key royal to end his feud with Prince Harry: His older brother William, Prince of Wales. "Whatever the king does needs to be done in tandem with both brothers, not just one. He can't have unilateral discussions if William isn't in agreement," the author of "Charles III, New King, New Court" clarified. Unfortunately, that condition only further complicated matters for the British ruler since Prince William wasn't impressed with his estranged sibling after "Spare." 

In September, a confidant of the Waleses informed the Daily Beast that William believed Harry's claims in his tell-all memoir were completely "unforgivable." Moreover, the Prince of Wales' packed schedule revolved around his family's happiness and his work. As such, "There isn't space for a complicated reconciliation process with Harry. It's not a priority." Likewise, Charles' wife, Queen Consort Camilla Parker Bowles, reportedly has no interest in the royal reconciliation either. 

In June, an insider even declared to Us Weekly that the queen was deepening the wedge between the pair by telling her husband to avoid Harry as much as possible. "Camilla dislikes Harry and doesn't want Charles to get stressed while he's undergoing treatment, so she tries to limit interaction," the source contended. Similarly, in September, another insider divulged to the Daily Beast that although the king obviously desired to mend his relationship with his youngest son when he next visited the UK, Camilla had strongly urged him against meeting with him to protect his well-being.