While there’s sadly still no signs of a genuine truce between the Prince of Wales and the Duke of Sussex, sources say William “tried his best” to make his younger brother feel included at their beloved grandmother’s farewell.
“Wills is the first to admit he no longer trusts Harry and won’t be alone with him, but he’s not heartless,” says a source. “He was willing to put their issues aside in honour of the Queen. They’re both grieving.”
William no longer trusts his brother.
(Image: Getty)William, 40, was the only family member seen engaging with Harry’s wife Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, when he helped her to her seat at St George’s Chapel before the family’s committal service.
It’s also said that a last-minute decision to have Her Majesty’s grandchildren stand vigil around her coffin at Westminster Hall was William’s idea, in an attempt to smooth Harry’s ruffled feathers over him not being allowed to wear a military uniform at the funeral.
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As Woman’s Day previously reported, William allowed the Sussexes to join him and Kate on a walkabout at Windsor Castle after the Queen’s death, and it’s also said he stopped to wish Harry a happy 38th birthday when they came across each other on castle grounds.
Meanwhile, King Charles’ treatment of his son couldn’t have been more different.
According to London media, the 73-year-old only told his son of the Queen’s passing just five minutes before the rest of the world found out, and two hours after British PM Liz Truss was informed.
King Charles was allegedly very cold to his youngest son.
(Image: Getty)Harry was also invited then “uninvited” from a Buckingham Palace reception for visiting foreign dignitaries, and was not permitted to wear the Queen’s ER gold insignia on his Blues and Royals uniform at the grandchildren’s vigil – a move that drew sympathy from even Harry’s fiercest critics.
Interestingly, most of those decisions are said to have come from Charles’ office, and sources reveal William found it all to be entirely frustrating.
“Harry is like a raw nerve at the best of times and William tried his best to hold everything together, despite his own pain from Harry’s recent behaviour, and now he fears it’s all for nothing,” says an insider.
Charles was said to be “determined” to keep a distance between his youngest son and instead focused on his job. “He will never forget how much Harry has hurt him by claiming he was a bad father who cut his son off financially – neither of which is true,” says the source.
Tensions are high among the royal family.
(Image: Getty)HARRY AND ANNE’S SHOWDOWN
Scowling and with his arms raised seemingly in frustration, pictures of Harry speaking to his aunt, Princess Anne, as they walked from Windsor Castle to St George’s Chapel last week suggest the pair don’t see eye to eye.
“Anne is not backwards in coming forwards at the best of times,” says a source. “She’s had little contact with the Sussexes since they left, which was probably a good thing for them as she was very unimpressed with their conduct both before and after they left royal life. But with Harry there, it’s not surprising she’d take the opportunity to tell him he should make amends with his father, at the very least.
Anne, 72, raised Harry’s ire in 2020 by announcing she’d encouraged “younger royals” to “not reinvent the wheel”. At the time, it was taken as a dig at the US-bound Sussexes, who were making a case to be “half-in, half-out” royals.
Prince William was the only one seen engaging with Meghan Markle.
(Image: Getty)Last month, Meghan seemingly hit back when she insisted she “wasn’t trying to reinvent the wheel” in her controversial interview with The Cut.
Insiders maintain there is no love lost between Anne and the Sussexes and that it didn’t change during their visit. “She finds them entitled and can’t stand how they’ve treated her family, and they think she’s out of touch,” the insider puts it frankly, explaining that Harry’s even told friends that she’s never truly warmed to him.
