‘An embarrassing blow’: Why king’s letter draws a line in the sand for Harry and Meghan

Analysis: If Prince Harry and Meghan were hoping to quietly stage a comeback now they’re living in Britain, King Charles has drawn a line in the sand by ruling out any chances of the couple returning to the fold as working royals.

In a letter, the monarch was firm in his wishes when it comes to the plans of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, weeks after their arrival in the UK following six years of living in California.

To “help avoid doubt or confusion” Prince Harry and Meghan were “no longer working members of the royal family”, the king said via the head of the royal household, the Lord Chamberlain.

There would be “no change to the current status” of the couple, it said, and their His/Her Royal Highness (HRH) styling would “remain in abeyance” and cannot be used.

Prince Harry and Meghan are “private citizens with commercial and charitable interests”, the letter said.

Any “charitable work” carried out by them “is a personal matter...and undertaken in their private capacity”.

Read more

King Charles clarifies status of Prince Harry and Meghan after their return to UK

If there were any doubts about whether Charles was considering allowing Harry and Meghan back with open arms, the monarch has ruled it out completely and swiftly.

Any hopes of a half-in, half-out approach to royal life have been shut down by the king despite the model being tested − with some success − in Australia earlier this year.

Charles, as sovereign and head of his family, needed to act now as speculation about the Sussexes reached an all-time high.

If the king did not make his feelings on his youngest son, and his daughter-in-law, clear, it may have come across as a sign of weakness, indifference or an easing of the tensions between the royals and the Sussexes.

The monarch had been pressured to act ever since news of Harry and Meghan’s UK return was revealed last month. Buckingham Palace had been inundated with requests for clarity on the king’s position, and the Sussexes’ roles in the royal family.

So, the king made his stance clear in the strongly-worded letter shared with senior military and government officials on Monday (Tuesday morning in Australia).

Charles reportedly had the blessing of his eldest son, and heir, the Prince of Wales.

The letter was also sent to Prince Harry and Meghan, in what can only be described as an embarrassing blow to the couple hoping to start fresh in Britain after the collapse of their American dream.

Prince Harry and Meghan have been back in the UK for a fortnight and have been lying low ever since. Harry has been seen just once, at a recording studio in London working on a mystery project, while Meghan is said to be focusing on settling their children into their new school routine.

But both have aspirations to return to the spotlight by supporting charities they were once fully emersed with when part of the royal family after their royal wedding in 2018.

Prince Harry will continue his work with the Invictus Games and his remaining patronages including WellChild and Scotty’s Little Soldiers.

Meghan will look at supporting Smart Works again, her only remaining patronage. But she will be there simply as Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex and not Her Royal Highness. Her lifestyle brand As ever will continue, while her acting career remains up in the air.

The situation regarding Prince Harry and Meghan’s status as non-working royals has not changed since early 2020, following the Sandringham agreement, but some members of the public do not see the distinction between them and other members of royal family carrying out engagements on behalf of the monarchy.

The nuance between working and non-working royals, for some, is not clear, so the king has acted now with no room for misunderstandings.

Charles, according to multiple sources in Britain, was “blindsided” by the Sussexes’ decision to return after six years and kept in the dark, told just days before it was made public. The Prince and Princess of Wales, too, were unaware. Prince William is said to be furious.

Now Harry and Meghan are living in the UK again, reportedly in the Cotswolds, there’s been speculation events attended by the royal family throughout the year will look very different: Christmas at Sandringham, Easter at Windsor Castle, Trooping the Colour at Buckingham Palace and so on.

Their return to Britain opened up a myriad of questions and the king has moved to silence them in one firm, but considered move.

The main thing the public wanted to know was whether Harry and Meghan would ever return as working members of the family.

The Sussexes’ quasi-royal tour of Australia in April left many wondering whether the half-in, half-out approach would become the norm moving forward.

Across four days in Sydney, Melbourne and Canberra, the couple carried out charitable events alongside paid engagements.

There was a mental health conference headlined by Prince Harry and a women’s retreat with Meghan as the guest star, with tickets costing well over $1000.

There was also an emotional morning with survivors of the Bondi Beach terror attack and a meeting with patients at a children’s hospital.

Outfits seen on the duchess were added to an online shopping platform, including the dress Meghan wore at the children’s hospital marking the start of the tour. After public outcry, that outfit was quickly removed from the app.

The Sussexes’ team stressed the visit was done in a private capacity, but to seasoned royal watchers it had all the hallmarks of a royal tour. It was a commercial visit for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, with a handful of opportunities thrown in for Harry and Meghan to highlight their charitable causes.

And it had the royal family worried about what would come next.

Prince Harry and Meghan proved they could command a hefty fee by capitalising on their high-profiles as former working royals, picking and choosing the agenda to suit their own.

A source close to the couple said at the time: “We’ve tested the playbook, it worked... this could absolutely act as a blueprint for the future”.

Read more

Why Harry and Meghan have been out of sight since arriving in the UK

As Prince Harry and Meghan, and Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet, settle into their new life in Britain, King Charles has shown he still calls the shots. The coveted half-in, half-out approach that worked so well for the Sussexes around the world will not be accepted in Britain.

The couple may have bent the rules in the six years since their departure as working royals and will find the situation in Harry’s homeland very different this time around.

The King and Queen Camilla, and the Prince and Princess of Wales, are back at work after their summer break. Prince George is starting high school at Eton College this week.

For the royal family, it is business as usual. There is no time, or room, for Prince Harry and Meghan to disrupt the way of things now. Of that, the king has made it very clear.