Prince William He was given a new military title, but many familiar with the royal family’s history believe it would likely have gone to his estranged younger brother. Prince HarryHarry would have remained a working member of the royal family.
On Wednesday, King Charles III announced that he had commissioned his eldest son as a colonel in the Army Air Corps. Charles himself held the role for 31 years.
But it was Harry who served multiple tours of duty in Afghanistan and actually served in the very unit that William will lead, leading many to believe that Harry would have taken up that title had he remained a working senior royal.
In 2020, Harry and his wife Meghan Markle, announced their intention to step down as senior members of the royal family. They moved to California with their now five-year-old son Archie and later welcomed their almost three-year-old daughter Lilibet.
Shortly after the couple made their decision in 2020, the palace released a statement about the couple’s new titles. “The Sussexes will not use their HRH titles as they are no longer working members of the Royal Family,” the statement said.
Prince Harry was also stripped of his honorary military titles.
In the 2020 book Finding Freedom: Harry and Meghan and the Making of the Modern Royal FamilyRoyal reporters Omid Scobie and Carolyn Durand wrote that the loss of Harry’s honorary military appointments hit him hardest.
“This was a hard pill to swallow and one that was most painful for Meghan to have to go through,” a source close to the couple says in the book. “It’s the one that made Harry emotional.”
These titles included Captain General of the Royal Marines, Honorary Commander of Royal Air Force Base Honington and Honorary Commodore-in-Chief of Small Ships and Diving Operations of the Royal Navy.
Harry and his brother William have remained estranged in recent years following the Sussexes’ exit from royal life and the subsequent Netflix documentaries. Harry and Meghanclosely followed by Harry’s comprehensive memoir, Spare part.
William has taken on more than his fair share of royal duties as his father Charles and his wife. Kate Middletonare dealing with their own private cancer battles.
Harry is currently in the United Kingdom We’re celebrating the 10th anniversary of the Invictus Games, the event for wounded veterans that he helped create.
After it was revealed that his father was undergoing cancer treatment, ET confirmed that Charles’ younger son had received cancer treatment quickly flew to the UK to visit him with his father, if only for a short time – supposedly just a few hours.
On Tuesday, a representative for the Duke of Sussex told ET that despite their closeness to each other Prince Harry would not visit his father on this trip due to his busy schedule for the Invictus Games.
A spokesperson for Prince Harry told ET: “In response to the many inquiries and ongoing speculation as to whether or not the Duke will meet with his father during his stay in the United Kingdom this week, unfortunately due to His Majesty’s busy schedule this will not be the case.” not possible.” .”
The spokesman added: “The Duke of course understands his father’s busy schedule with his commitments and various other priorities and hopes to see him again soon.”
It’s another case of “so close but so far” with his immediate family in England after Harry and Prince William both took part in a memorial event for their mother – Harry practically and William personally – and narrowly avoided each other. The The royal rift appears to be worse than ever for the brothers, a whole year after barely acknowledging each other during her father’s coronation.
However, the ice may be thawing, as ET learned back in March that Meghan, 42, and Harry contacted privately to Prince William, 41, and the Princess of Wales, 42, after their cancer diagnosis.
Additionally in a statement to ETThe Duke and Duchess of Sussex said at the time: “We wish Kate and the family health and healing and hope they can do so privately and in peace.”
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