The Queen needs working royals that she can trust
Another week, and yet another cloud of controversy hangs over the Royal Family. Prince Philip has now been in hospital for more than a week and the Sussexes seem to have burnt the last bridge with the Royals. The rift that was once between the Californian-based duke and duchess and the working Windors in the UK has now been transformed into a chasm as wide as the Atlantic Ocean which separates them.
While the Queen had to deal with her husband being admitted to King Edward VII’s Hospital, London, two bombshells landed in her red box in the form of an Oprah ‘tell-all’ interview and the fact that Harry and Meghan will step away as working Royals permanently.
Their secondment to California is unlikely to be reversed, with the Duke and Duchess of Sussex being stripped of their HRH titles, honorary military appointments and Royal patronages.
The battle of statements between the two sides has sent shivers down spines and left heads shaking.
However, what is most saddening is the bond between a grandmother and her grandson is almost permanently severed. I feel for Harry, who has removed himself from the only life he has ever known to one that will certainly take some adjustment. But he should have understood his grandmother would not let them have their cake and eat it.
The meaning of ‘service’ is the root of the divide between the two parties, because they both interpret it so differently.
At 94, the Queen has never known a life away from serving her country. Throughout every scandal that has rocked her family and every event since 1953, she has been steady at the helm.
For the Sussexes to respond to Buckingham Palace’s statement of their official departure with the snipe that ‘service is universal’ is extremely insulting.
Being a working Royal requires teamwork. But removing yourself and living thousands of miles away is not a cheer for team spirit. The Queen needs people she can trust and rely on – que her plan for the Magnificent Seven – and there is evidently no room for part-timers.
The meaning of ‘service’ is the root of the divide between the two parties