King Charles III is caught between a rock and a hard place when it comes to his family feud.
Us Weekly sources told the outlet on Wednesday that the monarch is eager to make up with his son Prince Harry — but he’s been unable to make amends due to how badly his youngest child hurt his other son Prince Willam and, especially, his own wife Queen Camilla.
As Perezcious readers will recall, the Duke of Sussex really lit into the whole family in his Netflix docuseries and memoir Spare — going so far as to call Camilla an “evil” stepmother! She’s since been doing everything she can to keep the Archewell founder away from her husband as he focuses his attention on his cancer battle, an insider dished:
“Camilla dislikes Harry and doesn’t want Charles to get stressed while he’s undergoing treatment, so she tries to limit interaction.”
Queen Camilla ‘furious’ with Prince Harry’s ‘Spare,’ won’t forgive ‘bomb-like’ expose: insider
Like his brief half-hour meeting with his father immediately after his cancer diagnosis was announced? We all know that was a s**t show, mostly because Camilla kicked Harry out after hardly getting any time with his pops!
While the 75-year-old is going along with what his partner wants, he “is holding out hope of salvaging their relationship but is hugely conflicted because Harry has hurt William and Camilla so much.” However, a source noted that this isn’t a one-sided problem, adding that “Harry has also been hurt.” Addressing the ways Camilla was most offended during the royal rift, a second insider explained:
“When the docuseries came out, Camilla was furious. Then, when Spare [was released], Camilla was saddened by what was said about her. She was heartbroken and confused.”
Royal author Christopher Andersen pointed out that Harry and William “have always resented Camilla,” elaborating:
“They pleaded with their father not to marry her and only grudgingly agreed to go along with the charade if Charles kept his promise not to make her queen. That title would have gone to [Princess] Diana if Camilla hadn’t broken up their parents’ marriage. When Charles broke that promise, William and Harry felt betrayed.”
Yet one brother was able to suck it up. The other, well, he’s seemingly trying to get over his anger (at least publicly), but he has a long way to go until Camilla will even consider forgiving him. And honestly, that’s, probably the least of Harry’s problems!
The father of two is also on the outs with William and Princess Catherine as she battles cancer. Harry and Meghan Markle tried wishing Kate Middleton well during her cancer treatment, but it’s gotten them nowhere in terms of reconciliation. The second insider said:
“After the couple’s press interviews, William and Kate couldn’t believe or understand how Harry and Meghan expect to make up with them.”
But even if the Princess of Wales wanted to respond, she can’t!
The insider explained:
“She can’t respond — it’s a monarchy rule not to.”
The first source then doubled down:
“There’s no way back for Harry and Wills. He’s angry with Harry after what he said about Kate.”
Oof.
For Harry and Charles’ sakes, it doesn’t help that the Prince of Wales has become the second most important person to the king — meaning that if the patriarch wants to reconcile with his youngest, he’s also going to need to make sure the heir to the throne is okay with it, too! The author insisted that “Camilla and William are the people he relies on most.” Reflecting on Charles’ decision to make Will the new colonel-in-chief of the Army Air Corps, he added:
“Even those close to Charles and Camilla felt it was very pointed that Charles did the military handover to Wills that Harry should have had.”
So, Charles is clearly taking sides! And the entire royal family did too when nobody showed up to Harry’s Invictus Games anniversary in May! But the first source is now claiming that the king was never invited, now arguing:
“Harry’s team says he invited Charles, but Charles’s team is adamant he hadn’t been invited.”
Hmm. At this point, we doubt he would’ve gone even if he were invited. Andersen explained that he “sees the fine hand of Camilla” at work behind the scenes of this freeze-out, acknowledging:
“She’s focused on her husband’s health, and injecting Harry into the equation will only cause more turmoil.”
But even he thinks it’s a little much, noting that Charles’ avoidance of his son “does seem a little callous … the late Queen Elizabeth said she wanted Harry to be considered part of the family, always.” During a health battle as scary as cancer, you’d think Charles would want to put everything aside and get back onto good terms with all his family members, too. But the damage is too severe…
Sadly, this ongoing rift will have a huge impact on the next generation — namely Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet. Speaking of that, a third source emphasized the close bond Charles has with his grandkids Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis, but the same can’t be said for Harry’s kids! They reflected:
“It’s left a massive hole in his [Charles’] heart that he’s only spent a few fleeting days with them and then video calls on important days. […] He longs for the same relationship with his American grandkids.”
If His Majesty really cared about reconnecting, he could easily help the family with their security issues and lack of permanent housing in the UK, the source added:
“If the king wanted to see them so badly, he could make it easier to do so.”
Which could only mean one thing:
“Charles harbors a lot of anger towards Harry. He’s always been very protective of Camilla. It’s not easy for him to forgive people who have scorned her.”