As tensions continue to simmer between Prince Harry and brother Prince William, the Duke’s relationship with the royal family is finally at breaking point.
Amid a tense year for the royal family as it battles with ongoing health issues, Harry’s attempt to reach out to both his father King Charles and older brother William have been met with silence, with texts, calls and letters all reportedly having gone ignored.
The rift with Prince William is “very bad,” a royal insider told PEOPLE, but it’s not “irreparable.”
The warring brothers last met in September 2022, when they were joined by their respective wives Kate, Princess of Wales and Meghan Markle, Duchess of Sussex to meet with mourners outside Windsor Castle following the death of her majesty The Queen.
Although several key royal milestones have taken place since then, Harry largely stayed on the sidelines, particular at the coronation of King Charles, when he was noticeably seated two rows behind his older brother and his family.
Even more tellingly, Duchess Meghan declined to attend at all and instead remained in the US to celebrate Prince Archie’s birthday.
The rift first began back in 2016 according to reports, after William allegedly expressed concerns over his brother’s relationship with Meghan. In Prince Harry’s own memoir Spare, he even described a tension between the pair and liked William to both a “beloved brother and arch nemesis”.
Earlier this year, Prince Harry returned to the UK briefly to mark the 10th anniversary of the Invictus Games, yet once again despite being in London at the time, he didn’t meet with his father or his brother, with a spokesperson for the Duke having attributed the lack of interaction as a clash in schedules.
However, sources close to Harry hint at a deeper issue – with security concerns being one of the most pressing.
According to insiders, The Duke of Sussex wanted to discuss his ongoing battle for security, which he has been fighting for in court for over four years, following his decision to step back from life as a working royal.
Harry is said to believe that his father has the power to reinstate this, but a palace source told the publication that this is “wholly incorrect.”
Although a glimmer of reconciliation was seen in February, when Harry reached out to his father following his cancer diagnosis, the relationship between the pair has seemingly deteriorated.
Those close to Harry say the monarch no longer takes his son’s calls or responds to his letters.
“He gets ‘unavailable right now,’ ” a friend of Harry’s says. “His calls go unanswered. He has tried to reach out about the King’s health, but those calls go unanswered too.”
Yet the distance is just one issue on the Prince’s mind, as much of his concerns now stem from the safety of of his wife and two young children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet.
“Harry is frightened and feels the only person who can do anything about it is his father,” claimed a royal source. “”Harry is determined to protect his own family at all costs.”
Prince Harry’s tax-payer funded protection was withdrawn back in 2020, and has seen become a matter of bitter contention for the royal which has taken him to court in order to argue his case for reinstating protection.
Constitutionally, King Charles no governmental power in the U.K., and the power to bestow police protection lies with the Executive Committee for the Protection of Royalty and Public Figures (RAVEC), a government organisation.
Yet despite Prince Harry’s offer to cover the cost of police protection during his UK visits, this offer was rejected by the court, and now the royal reportedly believes that Charles could intervene and see it reinstated.
