According to a royal book, the Queen was “hurt and exhausted” by Harry and Meghan’s decision to retire from the Royal Family and relocate to the United States.
In The New Royals – Queen Elizabeth’s Legacy and the Future of the Crown, author Katie Nicholl says a source close to Her Majesty claimed she didn’t like to think about the Duke and Duchess’s decision to leave.
The book’s release of an extract in Vanity Fair has revealed that the Queen was also upset when Harry and Meghan did not come back to the UK from August with Archie and Lilibet. Apparently, every year she hosts a ‘sleepover’ at Sandringham with her grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
According to the source: ‘[The Queen] was very hurt and told me, “I don’t know, I don’t care, and I don’t want to think about it anymore”.’
The source stated it was a bummer for Her Majesty that the Sussexes’ move prevented her from seeing as much of Archie and Lilibet as she’d have liked.
Her Majesty passed away at Balmoral Castle on 8 September at the age of 96. Her eldest son Charles automatically became King upon her death.
The book alleges that Charles, as the monarch, is interested in mending relationships between his family and youngest son Harry.
On September 9th, King Charles gave his first televised address to the nation where he said: ‘I want also to express my love for Harry and Meghan as they continue to build their lives overseas.’
Some royal followers have suggested that the mention of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex was a ‘olive branch’ to the couple, who were in Europe when Queen Elizabeth II died.
Harry and Meghan, who reside in a $14 million mansion located in Santa Barbara, California, prolonged their trip by staying at Frogmore Cottage on the Windsor Estate. This took place during the mourning period after Queen Elizabeth II’s death and before her state funeral service, committal service, and private burial that occurred on Monday.
Despite the animosity between the Sussexes and the rest of the family, there have been brief flashes of a possible rapprochement since Queen Elizabeth’s passing.
On the Saturday after the monarch’s death, Prince and Princess of Wales made their first public appearance outside the Windsor Estate to read tributes for Her Majesty and greet mourners.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex joined the couple, much to everyone’s surprise, as they grieved together.
On Saturday, King Charles had allowed Prince Harry, who served in Afghanistan, to wear his military uniform during a vigil last Saturday night along with the Queen’s other grandchildren, who guarded her coffin as it lay in state in Westminster Hall.
Although he is no longer a working royal, King Charles allowed his youngest son to wear the military uniform so he could pay respects to his grandmother.
After Harry and Meghan left The Firm in February 2020, the Duke of Sussex’s relationships with his father and brother became tense.
The Sussexes’ contentious claims about the Royal Family a year later heightened the family’s split, when they took part in an incendiary interview with US journalist and presenter Oprah Winfrey.
