Queen ‘offers Balmoral stay’ in olive branch to the Sussexes
THE Queen has reportedly offered an olive branch to Prince Harry by inviting him and his wife to Balmoral during her summer break.
She is said to have offered to host Harry, Meghan and children Archie and Lilibet when other royals are not around to avoid awkwardness amid tensions in the family.
The Queen, 96, arrived in Aberdeenshire on Thursday and is due to stay for ten weeks at seven-bedroom Craigowan Lodge – an impressive cottage a mile from the main Balmoral Castle.
It remains to be seen whether the duke and duchess, who stepped down as working royals in 2020, will take up the offer. The Queen is said to be keen to keep a line of communication open with her grandson, despite the hurt caused by his and Meghan’s tell-all interview with US chat show host Oprah Winfrey in which they accused a member of the Royal Family of racism.
There is also concern in royal circles about Harry’s plans for a book. The Queen travels to Balmoral, a place of sanctuary for the Royal Family since the reign of Queen Victoria, every year for her summer break.
Members of the Royal Family are invited to spend time with her at the castle each summer. Last year, William and Kate came with their children George, Charlotte and Louis. Edward and Sophie also visited with Lady Louise and Viscount James. And Prince Andrew laid low on the 50,000acre estate for many weeks while US lawyers attempted to serve his sex abuse writ. Harry, 37, and Meghan, 40, have not been to Balmoral to see the Queen since 2018.
The couple, whose relations with senior royals including Prince William are strained, secretly visited Prince Charles and the Queen when they stopped off on the way to the Netherlands for the Invictus Games in April. They also visited Britain for June’s Platinum Jubilee but were kept in the background.
A Balmoral insider told The Sun on Sunday: ‘Staff have been told to expect the full list of royals... They are preparing for the Sussexes.’
A second insider said: ‘Balmoral is the perfect place for them to spend a little bit of quality time with the Queen.’ But another source told the newspaper: ‘ I would be stunned if they did turn up.’
Boris Johnson may also travel for the Prime Minister’s audience at Balmoral, if a new leader is not chosen in time.
‘Stunned if they did turn up’