They say that as a parent you are only ever as happy as your unhappiest child. Given Prince Harry’s clearly troubled state of mind, it can’t have been easy for King Charles to find much peace these past few years.
Since the Duke and Duchess of Sussex left to start a new life in California, Harry has sadly shown himself to be deeply unhappy, lashing out like a wounded animal at those who care about him most.
His vengeful accusations cast a dark shadow over the final years of his grandmother’s life.
Meanwhile, his idyllic new lifestyle alongside his fragrant wife and children in their beautiful new home – with her rose petal jam and artful fruit platters – does not seem to have brought him the satisfaction or freedom he desired.
That’s because, as any fool knows, you can’t run away from yourself. No amount of sunshine or honey can make someone happy if their heart remains filled with rage, as his seems to be.
King Charles with Prince William, Catherine, Princess of Wales, and the Duke and Duchess of Sussex at the Christmas Day service in 2018
He is so obviously lost, and that is largely why, having justified his departure as an ‘escape’ from the intolerable claustrophobia of royal life, he has nevertheless clung to his birthright.
Truth is, if you strip away his royal status there’s not an awful lot left to work with. Just a middle-aged man-child with a rather pushy wife, expensive tastes and no discernible skills.
No surprise then that, as reported exclusively in The Mail on Sunday yesterday, he should be seeking a way back into the royal fold.
Two of his top aides, Meredith Maines, chief communications officer and head of his household in Montecito, and Liam Maguire, who runs the Sussexes’ PR team in the UK (for two people who profess to want a ‘simple’ life, they sure have a lot of staff), met with the King’s trusted Press Secretary, Tobyn Andreae, for a drink at the Royal Over-Seas League (ROSL), a hop, skip and a jump from Clarence House.
Sources at the Palace were at pains to point out that there was ‘no formal agenda, just casual drinks’. But since ROSL styles itself as an ‘international organisation dedicated to friendship and understanding across borders’ and there are no coincidences when it comes to the Royal Household, the meeting is widely being interpreted as the first tentative public step (who knows what wheels may have been whirring in private) towards some form of reconciliation.
Meredith Maines, chief communications officer and head of Harry’s household in Montecito, and Liam Maguire, who runs the Sussexes’ PR team in the UK, were seen meeting with King Charles’s head of communications, Tobyn Andreae, left
This can only be to the good. The King’s health seems to be well-managed, but he’s not getting any younger. He’s never even met his youngest grandchild, Lilibet, and neither of the Sussex children have spent any time with their English cousins. It would make everyone so much happier to bury the hatchet.
But I must sound a note of caution. Over the past few years, Harry has not only shown himself to be volatile, but also untrustworthy. And he does not come to this from a position of strength. So you have to ask yourself: what are his real motives here?
He hasn’t exactly distinguished himself as a ‘civilian’. Every single project he’s undertaken has been predicated on his titles, and that’s because the only real currency he has is as a member of the British Royal Family.
It’s a rich resource which he has ruthlessly mined; but without contact with the source, the well is beginning to run dry. Prince Harry needs to replenish his royalness – and making nice with Pater is the quickest and easiest way of reminding the world of that profitable connection.
The King needs to be aware of this. At the end of the day, Prince Harry has more to gain than his father does from a rapprochement.
There is another consideration too: Prince William. As a dad, Charles must not punish the perfect son while letting the wayward child off the hook. And the truth is that while Prince Harry has been jetting around the globe in a blue funk, sounding off about the folks back home, the Prince of Wales has been head down, behaving impeccably at every turn.
So has the Princess of Wales. The King can’t just allow Harry to waltz back in to the fold without acknowledging how destructive and hurtful his behaviour has been towards his brother and his brother’s wife. He needs to make clear where his appreciation lies.
Nor can Harry simply expect to just pick up where he left off. As well as letting his family down, his brattish and selfish behaviour has let the people of Britain down. Many are deeply disappointed and saddened by his actions. He can’t just swan back as though nothing had happened; he is going to have to earn back the love and respect he so blithely squandered.
The test now is whether he is prepared to do all that – or whether this is just Harry up to his old tricks again.
