Prince Harry’s clapback at King Charles over decision to not allow Meghan Markle at queen’s deathbed
The queen died in September 2022Prince Harry hit out at his father King Charles when his wife Meghan Markle was prevented from being at the late queen’s deathbed in 2022.
Prince Harry, 40, and Meghan, 43, were in the country when Queen Elizabeth II died in September 2022. However, only Harry was allowed to be at her side when she died.
Why Meghan Markle wasn’t at Queen Elizabeth II’s deathbed
A 2024 biography about King Charles shed some light on why Meghan wasn’t at the queen’s deathbed alongside Prince Harry.
Harry and Meghan were in the UK in September 2022 carrying out charity work when the queen died aged 96.
According to the book, Harry and Meghan had always planned on going to the queen’s deathbed together.
Then came another call from Pa. He said I was welcome at Balmoral, but he didn’t want… her.
However, when it came down to it, only Harry ended up travelling to Balmoral Castle to be at her side.
It was believed at the time that both Kate, Princess of Wales, and Meghan had been asked by Charles to stay at home so William and Harry could be at their grandmother’s side, alone.
However, the book, titled Charles III: New King, New Court, The Inside Story, seemed to suggest this wasn’t quite the case.
Why King Charles told Prince Harry to keep Meghan away
Author Robert Hardman claimed that Kate hadn’t stayed behind because she’d been told to, but because she wanted to.
The queen’s death happened on the same week as George, Charlotte, and Louis’ first day at Lambrook School. According to Hardman, Kate wanted to stay at home to be with her children on what was an important week for them.
It has been alleged that Harry was initially unhappy that Meghan had been told to stay away from Balmoral. However, when he heard that Kate had also been apparently told to stay away, this calmed him down considerably.
According to the book, the reason Charles had prevented Meghan coming was because he didn’t want any family conflict.
Prince Harry reveals conversation with father King Charles over queen’s deathbed
In his 2023 autobiography, Spare, Harry wrote about the moment he fumed at his father for telling him Meghan wasn’t welcome.
“Meg and I looked at flight options. The Press started phoning; we couldn’t delay a decision any longer. We told our team to confirm: We’d be missing the WellChild Awards and hurrying up to Scotland,” he wrote.
“Then came another call from Pa. He said I was welcome at Balmoral, but he didn’t want… her. He started to lay out his reason, which was nonsensical, and disrespectful, and I wasn’t having it. ‘Don’t ever speak about my wife that way,'” he recalled.
“He stammered, apologetic, saying he simply didn’t want a lot of people around. No other wives were coming, Kate wasn’t coming, he said, therefore Meg shouldn’t. ‘Then that’s all you needed to say,'” Harry added.
He then explained that within two hours, he was on a flight from Luton.
“We can easily imagine the dread with which the Prince of Wales approached that call,” Hardman wrote in his book.
“The Sussexes’ capacity for taking offence was well known and everyone was conscious that any conversation could end up in the public domain — as, indeed, this one did three months later.”
Read more: Royal family’s ‘firm decision over Prince Harry and Meghan’ years after exit scandal
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