Prince Harry finally spoke out over ‘cruel’ rumors James Hewitt was his real father
In a court case against one of the UK’s biggest newspapers, Prince Harry slammed the long-standing rumors about his paternity that claim former cavalry officer...In a court case against one of the UK’s biggest newspapers, Prince Harry slammed the long-standing rumors about his paternity that claim former cavalry officer James Hewitt is his real father.
Prince Harry has had enough of the media. The Duke and his Duchess Meghan Markle have gone to war against major publishers such as Daily Mirror and Mail on Sunday in the issues relating to the couple’s privacy. However, during his court case against Mirror Group Newspapers Limited, which he won in December 2023, the Spare writer made a rare comment on the rumors about his paternity in the media. The Duke of Sussex voiced how the rumors “felt very damaging.”
Rumors ‘James Hewitt is Prince Harry’s real father’ started in ’90s
Harry’s paternity has been called into question many times in the media. The rumors suggest that Princess Diana’s former riding instructor James Hewitt is the father of the late Princess’s second son.
In his 1999 memoir, Love and War, Hewitt recalled how the former Princess of Wales had asked him to give her riding lessons. “Only one thing went wrong,” he writes in his book. “We fell in love.”
The Princess herself admitted to the relationship in her 1995 interview with BBC’s Martin Bashir. When asked if their relationship went “beyond a close friendship”, an unfettered Diana said: “Yes it did, yes”.
When the media caught wind of Diana’s relationship with Hewitt, rumors that he could be Prince Harry‘s dad made the rounds. Many reporters, as well as so-called experts, could not help but make physical comparisons between Hewitt and Harry. The fact they both have red hair had many convinced that their speculations were true, but this has long been denied by both parties and anyone connected to the royal circle.
Prince Harry slammed damaging paternity rumors
In a written statement obtained by the New York Times (via Page Six), Harry blasted the paternity rumors. “At the time, when I was 18 years old and had lost my mother [Princess Diana] just six years earlier, stories such as this felt very damaging and very real to me,” the Duke wrote.
He also called the paternity rumors “hurtful”, “mean” and cruel.” “I was always left questioning the motives behind the stories. Were the newspapers keen to put doubt into the minds of the public so that I might be ousted from the Royal Family?” the Prince said.
In his witness statement, the Duke included two articles published in December 2002, headlined “Plot to rob the DNA of Harry” and “Plot to steal Harry’s DNA.” Harry also highlights the timeline of Diana’s relationship with Hewitt.
It was only in 2014 that Harry learned the real timeline of Diana’s relationship with Hewitt. He notes how the Princess hadn’t even met the Major until after Harry’s birth. The Archewell Foundation’s head also pointed out how the claim that the paternity rumor had come from a “highly placed royal source” was untrue. Prince Harry said he “firmly” did not believe that anyone from “within the Palace” was involved in spreading the vile gossip due to policy to protect family members.
Royal timeline puts paternity rumors to an end
As tantalizing as the rumor sounds, in reality, King Charles is Prince Harry’s real father. Even Hewitt openly denied the paternity rumor in 2017.
In an interview with Australia’s Channel Seven (via Independent), the former army man was asked if he was Harry’s father, and he swiftly responded “No, I’m not.” When asked why the rumor was still around, “It sells papers,” he said. “It’s worse for [Harry], probably, poor chap.”
Charles and Diana were married between 1981 and 1996. Prince Harry was born in 1984 while the romantic relationship between Diana and Hewitt started in 1986.
