King Charles III's decision to turn down a meeting with his son, Prince Harry, during the Duke of Sussex's recent visit to the UK has further highlighted the deep rift within the royal family. According to royal insiders, the 75-year-old monarch, who was diagnosed with cancer earlier this year, was keen to avoid the "drama" and "painful distraction" that Harry and his wife, Meghan Markle, have brought to the family in recent years.
Harry, 39, arrived in the UK to celebrate the tenth anniversary of the Invictus Games, the Paralympic-style event for wounded servicemen he established while still a working royal. Despite assumptions that he would take the opportunity to visit his father, it was announced on Tuesday that a reunion was not on the cards, with the King reportedly being too busy with "other priorities."
Sources close to the King reveal that he is still reeling from the barrage of explosive claims Harry and Meghan have made about the Royal Family over the past few years, including their dramatic interview with Oprah Winfrey, their Netflix docuseries, and Harry's bombshell memoir, "Spare." One insider told the Daily Mail, "He doesn't need the drama in his life," adding that "Harry and Meghan have brought him, and the rest of the family, nothing but worries over the past few years."
The King's cancer diagnosis has reportedly made him realize that "his time might be very limited," and he is now determined to make a real difference as quickly as possible without getting wrapped up in the drama surrounding the Sussexes. A royal source told The Daily Beast that the King's refusal to meet with Harry or send a minor royal to attend his Invictus event at St Paul's Cathedral "is a clear message that Harry is not welcome to conduct official, quasi-royal events in the U.K. that distract from the monarchy's message and agenda."
Harry cut an isolated figure during his UK visit, with no member of the royal family attending the Invictus Games service and all working royals, except Prince William and Kate Middleton, gathering to support the King at a garden party at Buckingham Palace taking place at the same time. The solo service was part of a series of high-profile snubs, including Harry's public claim that his father was too busy to see him and the palace revealing that William was to be made head of Harry's old regiment in a rare joint engagement with the King next week.
Trust has become a key issue within the royal family, particularly after Harry issued a statement blaming his father for not agreeing to meet him, which one friend of the King and Queen Camilla described as "rude, undignified, and childish." Another friend of Prince William and Kate Middleton said, "I think people understand now why the brothers are as far apart as ever. It's very sad, but William is right not to trust him."
The rift between Harry and his family appears to have deepened following his brief visit to the UK in February after Charles was diagnosed with cancer. During that visit, Harry was granted a 30-minute audience with the monarch, which was initially seen as a potential breakthrough. However, Harry's subsequent television interview, in which he speculated that his father's illness could draw the fractured royal family back together, reportedly irritated Charles' camp and damaged trust with his family.
