Charles was left ‘crushed’ when they went public
... as announcement overshadowed his tour
PRINCE Charles was left ‘crushed’ when Harry confirmed Meghan Markle was his girlfriend – as it overshadowed an official tour of the Middle East.
The besotted prince rushed out a statement in November 2016 attacking the ‘racial undertones’ of articles about Suits actress Meghan, giving his father and his staff just 20 minutes notice, a biography of the couple claims.
The extraordinary press release detailing claims of ‘abuse and harassment’ made headlines around the world and eclipsed ‘critical’ visits his father and the Duchess of Cornwall were making on behalf of the Government, the biography, Finding Freedom, says.
The Mail understands the move was considered by those on the trip as unforgivably rude and an appalling breach of protocol, particularly given the importance of the visit for Britain in terms of diplomatic relations, as well as economic, cultural and charity ties. The biography’s authors, Omid Scobie and
Carolyn Durand, wrote: ‘When Harry decided to make an official statement, the only stumbling block was Prince Charles. On a diplomatic tour in the Middle East, the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall had just arrived in Bahrain to meet the country’s King Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa.
‘It was a critical moment that had been in the works for months. A statement from Kensington Palace condemning the Press and, in the same breath, confirming Harry’s new girlfriend would all but eliminate coverage of Prince Charles’s tour of the Gulf.’
The biography of the Sussexes goes on to say: ‘The Palace decided to go ahead with the statement nonetheless, much of which was drafted by Harry himself. Sure enough, as soon as Harry put out his declaration, the statement dominated the news cycle. The team at Clarence House, which had spent months putting together Prince Charles’s tour in the hopes that it would be covered significantly, was crushed.’
The move left Charles ‘disappointed’ according to the book, which also claims the heir to the throne ‘understood’ the situation with Meghan had ‘reached a tipping point’. It adds: ‘Harry had felt the need to prioritise the woman he loved over duty to the greater royal Family.’
Harry’s statement – much of which he wrote with then-press secretary Jason Knauf, read: ‘His girlfriend, Meghan Markle, has been subject to a wave of abuse and harassment. Some of this has been very public – the smear on the front page of a national newspaper; the racial undertones of comment pieces; and the outright sexism and racism of social media trolls and web article comments.’
‘It was considered unforgivably rude’