Prince William and Prince Harry have a strained relationship, but the royal siblings used to be very close. At one point, the Duke of Sussex even said his role was to support his big brother, according to a royal expert.
Prince Harry Reportedly Said His Role Was To Support His Brother Prince William
Arthur Edwards, who has been the royal photographer for The Sun since 1975, weighed in on the relationship between King Charles' two sons. He has joined royal tours and has countless close encounters with Prince Harry and Prince William. According to him, Meghan Markle's husband said he would support the heir to the throne, but that was years before they got married.
"The brothers were so close," Arthur told Fox News Digital.
"They did everything together. They were absolutely inseparable. … I remember Harry making a speech when he was about 25, 26, saying his main role in life was to support William because he knew that William was going to be the king one day. He would need Harry to support him."
When Prince William married Kate Middleton, the royal couple worked closely with Prince Harry. Arthur recounted how the three, dubbed "the royal trio," worked tirelessly for their mental health charity. Prince Harry reportedly had his own charitable work. However, things are very different between the Prince of Wales and Duke of Sussex.
"There's a bitterness now that wasn't there before. … I remember watching them play football together, ride horses together – they were always together. At the moment, I can't see them reconciling, but I've got my fingers crossed," Arthur added.
Prince William Couldn't Completely Forgive Prince Harry, Biographer Claims
Vanity Fair royal correspondent Katie Nicholl previously spoke about the royal siblings' relationship. According to her, the Duke of Cambridge couldn't completely forgive his younger brother for abandoning his royal duties because he was counting on his support by the time he would take over the throne.
"[When Harry stepped back from his royal duties], it was very difficult for William, and I think that's partly why this rift hasn't been resolved, because, you know, William can't completely forgive Harry for what he's done," Nicholl told Us Weekly while promoting her new book The New Royals: Queen Elizabeth's Legacy and the Future of the Crown.
When Prince Harry and Markle stepped down from their royal duties, the Prince and Princess of Wales' family was put in the spotlight. The circumstances moved them center stage sooner than they expected, especially because their three children — Prince George, 9, Princess Charlotte, 7, and Prince Louis, 4 — are still too young.
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"I think William had always expected that he would have the support of his brother. And I think it wasn't just that Harry had chosen to leave and to stand down. I think a lot of it was how he chose to do that and what William saw as [a] great disrespect to the institution and to his, to his family, to his grandmother," Nicholl explained.
Do you agree that Prince Harry's decision to step back from his royal duties was what ruined his relationship with his big brother, Prince William?
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