The main purpose of the Trooping the Color parade was Kate’s grand return to the royal family – but according to reports, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle were also able to attend for a brief moment.
The Princess of Wales, who is undergoing treatment for cancer, joined Prince William, their three children, King Charles and Queen Camilla, the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh, Lady Louise Windsor and Princess Anne, for the annual official celebration of the ruler’s birthday.
According to royal author Tom Quinn, the idea of inviting the Duke and Duchess of Sussex to appear alongside them was discussed behind the palace doors.
“There was a brief discussion among members of the royal family about inviting Harry and Meghan to Trooping the Color,” he said.The Mirror.
“But the idea was quickly rejected because even if the couple accepted the invitation, there is a feeling that they have cast a dark shadow over everything.”
In addition to not even speaking to William and Kate, Harry and Meghan have also become polarizing figures amid their public criticism of the royal family in recent years.
Harry has only seen his father once this year, during a brief meeting lasting less than an hour after Charles’ cancer diagnosis, while Meghan has not returned to the UK since the funeral of the late Queen Elizabeth in 2022.
His attempt to catch up with the king again last month during his visit to London for the Invictus Games events was publicly rebuffed, with Harry’s team issuing a statement confirming that Charles was too busy to meet him.
Claims that the idea of inviting Harry and Meghan to the Trooping of Color has been floated comes at the same time as a separate report indicates how far the family is from a reconciliation.
The Daily mail reports that the reporter “asked a knowledgeable source if Harry could bring his children to meet the king at Balmoral” during the royal family’s annual summer break in the U.K. and was met with “a resounding response.”
The publication added that attempts to mend the relationship had been “complicated” by Harry’s “repeated attacks on his father and family and his stubborn insistence in British courts that he was not safe bringing his family to the UK.”
Harry’s most damaging allegations that emerged from his 2021 Oprah interview include: Harry and Meghan documentary series on Netflix and his memoirs, Reserve, he viewed the king as an often distant parent, William as short-tempered and the instigator of a physical fight between the brothers over Meghan, Kate as a cold and unfriendly figure, and Camilla as “dangerous” in her pursuit of PR rehabilitation.
Earlier this month, it was reported that the king had “directly” asked his son not to reveal any further private details about their family in order to heal the rift.
Quinn said Mirror that the king gave his son a strong recommendation, ordering him to “stop complaining publicly.”
“Harry has been directly asked by his father not to write or say anything else publicly about the family or his brother that could cause trouble, and everyone knows that when the king asks you to do something, there will be consequences if you don’t do it. obey,” Quinn told the newspaper.
“For years, when Harry complained about his family’s treatment, he had only one goal – to obtain an apology and see his father and brother make amends.
“Harry just doesn’t see that complaining in private can work; complaining publicly only makes things worse, and in Harry’s case that means cutting more and more ties to his past.