REUNITED AT LAST!
The feuding royal brothers come together for the sake of their grieving family
As Prince Harry last week raced against the clock to get home from California to his mourning family – all while making sure his pregnant wife would be OK without him – he largely left the logistics at the other end of his flight to organisers back in Britain.
But the impending reunion with his estranged brother Prince William, after more than a year, was no doubt at the front of his mind.
SURPRISE VISIT
And as his British Airways flight touched down at Heathrow on Sunday, April 11 – just making the deadline to be able to quarantine for five days before the Duke of Edinburgh’s April 17 funeral – a waiting blacked-out Land Rover was there ready to whisk Harry on to the 15-minute drive to Frogmore Cottage, in the grounds of the Queen’s Windsor estate.
It was there at his old home that he was required to isolate before a negative COVID-19 test would clear him to join his family.
However, Woman’s Day can reveal that Harry, 36, was visited by his older brother, who suffered with COVID a year ago, within days of landing on his home turf. Palace insiders are abuzz with chatter that Harry and William, 38, held a “quiet, socially distant summit” outside the cottage Harry and his wife Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, lease from the Queen, in a bid to clear the air between them ahead of the weekend’s sombre celebration of their grandfather’s illustrious life. “Prince William knew that despite all the bad feeling between them, it was important to let bygones be bygones,” says a source. “The whole world was about to watch them walk shoulder to shoulder behind Prince Philip’s casket, but most importantly, William knew a truce was needed for the Queen’s sake. She has
lost her beloved husband – the last thing she needs is her grandsons quarrelling in St George’s Chapel.”
It was the brothers’ first chance to talk in person since Harry and William joined their grandmother and Prince Charles at the so-called “Sandringham Summit” in January 2020, where they ironed out the final details of the Sussexes stepping down as senior royals and moving to North America.
So tense were negotiations, it’s believed that William refused to stay for a meal with his brother and the Queen, 94, after the official meeting was done.
Since then, relations have only frayed further, with Harry being stripped of his honorary military titles – much to his fury – and the Sussexes earlier this year giving a searing tell-all to Oprah Winfrey about
their feud with the royals, in which they alleged there is a racist in the family and that William’s wife, the Duchess of Cambridge, made Meghan cry before her wedding.
GUIDING LIGHT
Just weeks later, Harry revealed to US TV anchor Gayle King that he’d since spoken to his older brother but discussions were “unproductive” – a move believed to have left future king William “incandescent”.
“There is obviously a lot to unpack for both of them, and they didn’t get through anywhere near what they needed to before their grandfather’s funeral in order to start afresh,” says a source.
“But there was an ‘I’m sorry’ from both parties, which is a step in the right direction. I imagine Harry was quite relieved to be back in the company of his big brother, who has been his guiding light through times of sadness before.
“Harry will find it hard to forgive himself for not taking the opportunity to travel to England long before Prince
‘William knew it was important to let bygones be bygones’
Philip died to make his peace with his grandfather, who was aghast at Harry and Meghan’s recent hijinks. William sees no need to punish Harry for that, because he knows all too well that Harry will punish himself enough. For now, Wills is taking Philip’s usual advice – just get on with it.”
It’s believed that within hours of their private meeting, the princes instructed their staff to release their own heartfelt family statements, with the younger brother waiting a respectful 30 minutes after his senior sibling’s tribute went public.
SPECIAL MEMORIES
In a tone befitting the calm, collected future monarch, William described his grandfather’s solid innings as a “century of life... defined by service”. He added, “I feel lucky to have not just had his example guide me, but his enduring presence well into my own adult life – both through the good times and the hardest days.
“I will always be grateful that my wife had so many years to get to know my grandfather and for the kindness that he showed her.”
Harry, meanwhile, showed signs of his trademark casual sense of humour – a trait that fell by the wayside, at least publicly, as he made his exit from the family.
He said his grandfather was a “rock for Her Majesty” and “a man of service, honour and great humour”.
He added, “But to me, like many of you who have lost a loved one or a grandparent over the pain of this past year, he was grandpa: master of the barbecue, legend of banter, and cheeky right ’til the end.”