Harry and William met privately, dialogue 'unproductive' but a 'first step' Prince Philip would've wished for
Prince Harry and his brother Prince William spent two hours behind closed doors after their grandfather's funeral on Saturday, April 17, despite their long-standing feud, according to reports.
The brothers were joined by their father, Prince Charles, at Windsor Castle after the royal family laid Prince Philip to rest at the St George's Chapel, a source told The Sun. But what did the Dukes of Cambridge and Sussex talk about with their father during their private meeting? Here's all that you need to know.
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While a source characterized the dialogue between the three as "unproductive," an insider told the news outlet that it could be seen as a step in the right direction despite the brotherly strife. Following Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's explosive, tell-all CBS interview with Oprah Winfrey last month, the rivalry became even more heated.
After the Duke of Edinburgh's funeral, Prince Charles held private talks with his sons, which insiders claim is just what Philip would have liked, The Sun reported. Following Saturday's televised service, the three got together away from the cameras. They stayed together for two hours on the Quadrangle of Windsor Castle, mingling with family members. This gave rise to hopes that the crippling schism between the brothers could be resolved one day.
What did William and Harry talk about?
“It is not known what was said behind closed doors and when the cameras were turned off, but it's unfathomable to think Megxit and Oprah did not come up," a source told the Sun. “Harry and William appeared cordial as the cameras rolled and that seemed to pave the way for Charles to join them when everyone had left.”
Charles and Camilla strolled across the grass to speak to the princes. Family members were reported to have divided into small groups and spoken two meters apart without their facemasks, as they offered “solidarity” and “comfort”, sources revealed. The day marked Harry's first visit with his family since the Commonwealth Day celebrations at Windsor Castle last March.
Why is there a feud between William and Harry?
Veteran royal reporter Katie Nicholl said that Harry and William had a falling-out around Christmas 2018, when the Duke of Sussex told his older brother that he wasn’t doing enough to include his wife Meghan in the royal family, reported Cosmopolitan. This was around the same time that the media started to talk about a wedge between William's wife Kate Middleton and Meghan during a dress-fitting incident at the time of Meghan's wedding that apparently made Kate cry. In the recent Oprah interview, though, Meghan clarified that this was in fact the "opposite" of what happened- that Kate had made her cry instead.
“Harry felt William wasn’t rolling out the red carpet for Meghan and told him so. They had a bit of a fallout, which was only resolved when Charles stepped in and asked William to make an effort. That’s when the Cambridges invited the Sussexes to spend Christmas with them," Nicholl's source was quoted as saying.
Nicholl believes that "there is every hope" that the funeral of the Duke of Edinburgh will "be the beginning of the thawing of the rift" between the two sons of Prince Charles and Princess Diana. "I think the feeling certainly amongst senior royals and those who know the royals well, is that this will be an opportunity for the brothers to be together, to spend some much-needed time together," she said in a Cosmopolitan report.
'First step Philip would have wished for'
Harry has delayed his return ticket to California and is now set to attend the Queen's 95th birthday celebrations on Wednesday. He has also confirmed that he would attend the unveiling of Princess Diana's memorial statue at Kensington Palace with his older brother.
Insiders believe that the July 1 service, which will commemorate their mother's 60th birthday, will help to heal the divide between them. “It’s early days but you’d hope this is exactly the first step Philip would have wished for," a source said to The Sun.
For the first time since Harry and Meghan's bombshell US TV interview appeared to rip the royal family apart, the brothers joined their father, a tearful Charles, 72. In a prerecorded interview with Oprah Winfrey, Harry, 36, accused William, 38, and his father of being "trapped" in the royal family.