The King and the Prince of Wales have been enjoying their annual summer break at Balmoral but this year’s gathering has taken on an added dimension. Prince William joined King Charles at the royal residence in Scotland just hours after Harry and Meghan announced they were heading back to the UK. And that’s led to questions about just how the traditional Balmoral meeting has gone in the wake of the revelations.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex announced they were heading back to the UK late on Wednesday with sources confirming that their arrival is imminent. It’s expected Harry and Meghan, along with their two children, will return before the end of August as Archie and Lilibet are set to start school in the country in early September.
It was reported that King Charles was only informed of their decision on Sunday – despite Harry spending time with his father in July. It’s understood that the Prince of Wales was also told about the decision ahead of it becoming public.
Prince William was always set to be in Balmoral at the end of the past week. The Prince and Princess of Wales, along with their children, were seen arriving at the Aberdeenshire estate on Thursday, just hours after the Sussexes return to the UK became known.
Prince George, 13, Princess Charlotte, 11, and eight year old Prince Louis have long enjoyed a break with their grandfather at Balmoral as their school holidays come to a close. George is looking ahead to a big change of his own as he is set to start at Eton in September while Charlotte and Louis will return to Lambrook school in Berkshire which they have attended since 2022.
However, the Wales holiday in Balmoral took on a different aspect as it began amidst media interest in the return to the UK of Prince Harry and Meghan. The two left the country in 2020, saying they wanted to pursue their own business interests. They had originally wanted to continue some form of royal role alongside that but Queen Elizabeth II, with the support of her son, Charles, and Prince William, ruled out any ‘half in half out’ arrangement.
As soon as Harry and Meghan’s plans were announced, it was reiterated that the ‘half in halt out’ lifestyle was not available. The couple are returning as private citizens and will live in a non royal residence. They will not become working royals again.
Their return, though, has put a focus on family relations. Prince Harry met his father for afternoon tea this summer with Meghan and their children joining him and King Charles is reported to be happy that he will have more opportunity to spend time ‘privately’ with his younger son. Prince William is understood not to have spoken to Harry in a number of years and is angry and hurt by the many interviews that his brother and sister in law have given about their grievances against the Royal Family as well as the claims made by the Duke of Sussex in his book, Spare.
As well as the wider family context, other questions about the return remain unanswered. Prince Harry was claiming, just months ago, that the UK wouldn’t be safe enough for his wife and children to visit without full scale royal security. He has fought and lost a lengthy legal battle for such protection measures. It’s not clear what has changed for him to alter his opinion on the safety issue.
The Prime Minister, Andy Burnham, said security for Harry and Meghan was a private matter. The PM is also due in Balmoral imminently for the traditional weekend stay at the castle.
As William and Kate began their Balmoral break, there were further stories about the return of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex with reports that Meghan was going to take an acting role in a future series of The Gentlemen, the Netflix series created by Guy Ritchie. Meanwhile, Prince Harry was seen attending a public wreath laying ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery in Washington.
King Charles is expected to stay at Balmoral until early September, and is likely to be there on September 8, the anniversary of the death of Queen Elizabeth II and his own accession, both of which took place there.
