A reconciliation between Prince Harry, Prince William and their father is not out of the realm of possibility, sources say, amid concerns King Charles’ coronation will ‘become a circus’ if the royals are still at war.
A royal source with close ties to both His Majesty and the Sussexes believes both parties will look toward peace talks in the coming months.
‘It’s fixable,’ the source told The Times. ‘Both sides need to hold their hands up and admit ”we didn’t get everything right, and we got a lot wrong”… It’s going to take flexibility on all sides, but it can be done.’
‘It needs Harry over here, in the room with the King and Prince of Wales, a couple of other family members, some of ‘his people’ he trusts who always had his back, so he doesn’t think he’s being ambushed.’
Royal source says William’s loyalty is ultimately to his country, and he will reconcile if he believes it’s the best thing for the future of the monarchy
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex leave after a service of thanksgiving for Queen Elizabeth during her Platinum Jubilee celebrations last June
There are mounting concerns King Charles’ coronation could descend into a circus if his sons have not reconciled
The source said King Charles would have no issue with these terms. And Harry has made no secret of his desire to reconcile with his family – even in the midst of all the mudslinging of the past few weeks.
Prince William may be slightly harder to win over, the source said.
He’s said to have been extremely hurt by the way his younger brother has portrayed him in his memoir, Spare.
Harry has shared deeply personal recollections of brotherly spats they have shared, revealed text messages between his wife Meghan and the Princess of Wales during their now infamous bridesmaid dress argument and accused the future King and Queen of endorsing his Nazi costume.
Even still, the royal source says William’s loyalty is ultimately to his country, and he will reconcile if he believes it’s the best thing for the future of the monarchy.
A second source said: ‘They have to invite them in before the coronation, or it will become such a circus and distraction.’
The King’s coronation will take place on Saturday, May 6.
There have been conflicting messages as to whether the Sussexes can expect an invite to the ceremony.
Initially, it was reported Charles would extend an invitation to Harry and Meghan, though insiders quietly felt they’d find a reason to politely decline.
A reconciliation between Prince Harry, Prince William and their father is not out of the realm of possibility (Pictured: Charles, Harry and William at Princess Diana’s funeral in 1997)
The then Prince Charles (centre) attends the coronation of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II (left), in 1953, following the death of his grandfather George VI. There are now concerns his own big day will be overshadowed by the chaos if he doesn’t mend the rift between his sons
But amid the onslaught of insults there were whispers His Majesty was being urged to reconsider his position – even by some senior ranking royals – out of concerns any private discussions would make their way into print.
These qualms were no doubt not eased when Harry revealed in an interview with The Telegraph this week that he had enough material to publish a second book.
In fact, half of his first draft ended up on the cutting room floor, because he feared revealing its contents would mean he’d passed the point of no return with both his brother and father.
He said: ‘There are some things that have happened, especially between me and my brother, and to some extent between me and my father, that I just don’t want the world to know. Because I don’t think they would ever forgive me.’
These memories were shared with ghostwriter J.R. Moehringer only for context, and did not make the final cut. Publisher Penguin Random House says Spare is already a record breaker.
Harry said he knew that including any details about intimate moments with his family would attract backlash, but ultimately decided he could not truthfully tell his story without them.
Still, the Royal Household is said to remain hopeful the worst of the grenade throwing is now in the past.
If that proves to be correct, and Harry spends the next few weeks living the quiet life in Los Angeles he and Meghan have longed for, sources say there is hope for his relationship with his family.
Harry said he’d be open to reconciliation and even returning to a partial royal role, on the condition he could have ‘frank’ conversations with his family which would stay private.
The Duke of Sussex has appeared on several US television shows to promote the memoir and reveal additional family secrets
Prince Harry’s book, Spare, was released on January 10 and quickly became one of the fastest selling non-fiction books ever
‘I don’t know whether they’ll be watching this [interview] or not, but, what they have to say to me and what I have to say to them will be in private, and I hope it can stay that way,’ he said, noting he doesn’t want ‘frank discussions [to] leak out’.
The comments have been labelled ironic given all the private moments Harry has shared in his memoir.
He also said he’d require an apology for Meghan if he were to return to the royal fold.
The prince said: ‘You know what you did, and I now know why you did it. And you’ve been caught out, so just come clean.’
He claimed that ‘if people had listened’ to his concerns earlier, the gulf between he and Meghan and the rest of the royals would not have grown so wide.
It is not clear what Harry wants his family to apologise to his wife for but he claimed he was fighting the ‘good fight’ by siding with Meghan.
During the publicity blitz to promote his book, the Duke of Sussex told Tom Bradby that ‘a lot can happen between now and then’ when asked if he will go to see his father crowned in May.
The coronation – just 16 weeks away – will be a smaller affair than ever before, which is a reflection of King Charles’ ambitions for a slimmed down monarchy. The palace are yet to publish plans for the ceremony and the guest list has not yet been agreed.
Organisers said the event will ‘reflect the monarch’s role today’ and ‘look towards the future, while being rooted in longstanding traditions and pageantry’.
Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby said: ‘There is always a way forward. But it has to be at the right time.’
Hary also said he’d require an apology for Meghan if he were to return to the royal fold
The Duke of Sussex told Tom Bradby that ‘a lot can happen between now and then’ when asked if he will go to see his father crowned in May
