Don’t expect Prince William and Prince Harry to lean on each other as they mourn their beloved grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II.
Things between the brothers have been strained for a while now, further escalating once Harry and Meghan Markle exited their senior roles and aired quite a bit of the royal family’s dirty laundry over the past year. If you were hoping for a reconciliation between them at this time, you might be disappointed. Despite this unimaginable tragedy in their family right now, it sounds like they won’t be mending the fences anytime soon. In fact, a source spilled to Us Weekly on Friday that the feuding siblings kept their interactions as “civil” and as minimal as possible while they were at Balmoral Castle in Scotland together:
“There was fractional engagement between William and Harry at Balmoral. While the brothers are keeping it civil and acting like adults as they mourn the queen’s death, they’ve by no means turned the page and made amends.”
Related: King Charles Announces ‘Period Of Mourning’ — Here’s Everything That Happens
The insider then noted that “the mood is somber all around.” It’s such a shame they supposedly won’t be offering each other some comfort and instead are opting to keep distance between them while going through such a painful time right now.
But one person in the royal family extending an olive branch to Harry and Meghan? King Charles III – at least so it seems based on his first televised address since taking over the throne. The 73-year-old expressed to the Duke and Duchess of Sussex on Friday:
“I want also to express my love for Harry and Meghan as they continue to build their lives overseas.”
The fact that Charles took a moment to mention the couple in such a significant speech really feels like his own version of a peace offering as they enter this new chapter of the monarchy. Of course, who knows if the monarch was being sincere! The royals seemingly excluded Meghan and Harry once news broke about Queen Elizabeth’s health. Notably, while William, Prince Andrew, Prince Edward, and Sophie, Countess of Wessex, took a flight from London to Scotland together, Harry was not on board with them. He was still in the air when the death announcement was made. Awful. It’s hard not to think that his feud with William might have kept him off the plane with the other family members.
Meanwhile, Meghan either felt “she might not be terribly warmly welcomed” as BBC royal correspondent Nicholas Witchell noted, OR royal expert Katie Nicholl believes she “was not invited to join the family” at all! So there is a strong possibility Charles was trying to keep up appearances here if the fam actually shunned Meghan and Harry behind the scenes!
Hopefully, Prince William, Prince Harry, and even King Charles can just find a way to move past this rough patch in their relationship soon – or at least during this period of mourning for the Queen. Thoughts, Perezcious readers? Do you think Harry and William will ever get over their feud? Is the family extending an olive branch to Meghan and Harry? Let us know in the comments below.
[Image via MEGA/WENN]