Prince Harry was left furious after the Palace made a “cruel” move to strip him of his military uniform and “make him feel like s***” at a vigil for Queen Elizabeth II last year, a new book has claimed.
According to a report by Mirroronline, the incident happened in September 2022, when Harry and wife Meghan Markle attended a 15-minute vigil at Westminster Hall for the Queen’s eight grandchildren. Despite being a decorated war veteran, Harry was told he could not wear his military uniform at the sombre event.
Royal author Omid Scobie claims in his new book “Endgame” that this move left Harry incensed. “To rub salt in the wound, Prince Andrew had also been given permission to wear his military uniform for a vigil by his mother’s coffin two days earlier, complete with the Queen’s cipher and aiguillettes,” Scobie wrote.
A source told the author: “Some of these people are determined to make him feel like s***, determined to continue punishing him for leaving.” The decision was seen by Harry as deliberate bullying by the Palace.
Scobie’s book also reveals that Harry and Meghan were initially not even invited to join William and Kate on a royal walkabout in Windsor following the Queen’s death. The surprise invite was only issued to the Sussexes “moments” before the event.
The new revelations come amid an ongoing rift between Harry and Meghan and the rest of the royal family. Since stepping down from royal duties in 2020 and moving to California, the couple have been critical of their treatment by the royals and the pressures of life in the monarchy.
King Charles is said to be furious over the attacks. Royal expert Richard Kay wrote in the Daily Mail that Charles has been “more decisive” than the late Queen in response to the Sussexes’ grievances.
This includes Harry being quietly stripped of his “His Royal Highness” title on the royal website this month – a move Kay called “brutal” and deliberate.
The family friction will likely only worsen with the upcoming release of Harry’s tell-all memoir “Spare” in January, which is expected to contain more revelations about internal royal relationships.
Scobie, a journalist favourable to Harry and Meghan’s side of the royal rift, said his new book aims to provide “the other side of the story” to rebut the official palace narrative about the couple.
As well as the military uniform row, it contains claims that Meghan named two specific royals to King Charles who had “concerns” about her son Archie’s skin colour.
It also alleges that Charles himself gossiped about Harry in the aftermath of his Netflix series airing, branding his son a “fool.”
The book says relations are so strained that Charles is now wary about speaking freely to his youngest son at all.
Meanwhile, Prince William is described as increasingly “hard” in his stance towards Harry as he aims to protect the monarchy by becoming a “company man.”
Scobie suggests William himself has briefed the media against his younger brother to improve his own image at Harry’s expense.
He writes: “He’s sharing private information about his brother that ended up on the front page of a newspaper not long later. And these are things that have caused irreparable damage in the relations between each other.”
With Harry and wife Meghan now settled in California and speaking openly about their unhappiness in the royal system, a reconciliation between the brothers appears far off.
