Prince Harry is a strange man at his father’s coronation pageant
If anyone was hoping the coronation would help break the ice between Harry and his brother, they surely were disappointed.
LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM — In the fairytale finale of the ancient pomp in which King Charles III was crowned monarch, he boarded a gilded horse-drawn carriage with his queen and headed for his palace.
Following closely was Prince William, his eldest son and heir, along with his family, including 9-year-old Prince George who is second in line to the throne.
His isolation was probably a result of his leaving his royal duties and, thus, no longer classing himself as a senior member of the family, as well as alienating himself from his father and brother by voicing grievances and recounting palace secrets in his explosive best-selling memoir, “Spare.”
If anyone was hoping the coronation would help break the ice between Harry and his brother, who were once so close, they’ve surely been disappointed. The brothers were not seen speaking or even acknowledging each other during the ceremony.
After months of speculation about whether he would attend, it was announced about three weeks ago that Harry would be coming alone, leaving his wife, Meghan, and their two young children at their Southern California home.
Harry and Meghan, who is biracial, left the royal life and moved to the United States in 2020 after complaining of intense scrutiny and racist attitudes in the British press.
In a six-part Netflix series, they launched another criticism of the royal family, alleging racial bias. In January, Harry released his bombshell book revealing familiar filth alongside intimate details about losing his virginity behind a pub at 17, taking drugs and killing enemies in Afghanistan.
The book was especially unflattering to her stepmother, Camilla, who was once accused of ruining her father’s marriage to her mother, the late Princess Diana. She accused Camilla of leaking private conversations to the media to rehabilitate her image after marrying Charles.
Buckingham Palace had announced ahead of the coronation that Harry and the King’s brother Prince Andrew would have no role in the service.
Andrew, the Duke of York, has stepped down from royal duties after revelations about his friendship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. He was subsequently stripped of his military titles and honorary patronages, and settled a lawsuit with a woman who claimed she was forced to have sex with him when she was a teenager.
William played a prominent role, kneeling at his father’s feet, pledging his loyalty and then kissing him on the cheek. George served as a page, helping carry the train of his grandfather’s robes.
Harry entered the cavernous church in a custom black Dior three-piece suit with tailcoats. An honorary cross hung around his neck, and military medals were pinned to the left side of his chest. He nodded, saluted, and spoke a few words to the clergy and several guests already seated.
She trailed behind her cousin Princess Eugenie and her husband, Jack Brooksbank, who followed her father, Andrew. They all sat in the same row.
Throughout the two-hour show, the attention of the media and royal watchers was focused on Harry. He appeared to join the congregation in one of the many refrains of “God Save the King” during the ceremony filled with pomp and music.
Some British tabloids even consulted professional lip readers to interpret what Harry was saying.
The Daily Mirror revealed that he appeared to have said ‘hello’, ‘morning’ and ‘nice to see you’ as he entered the church.
Harry has vowed to make media reform part of his mission in life. He has filed several lawsuits against British tabloid publishers over a hacking scandal that dates back more than a decade.
His trial of the Mirror publisher begins on Wednesday in the High Court. Harry is due to testify in June.
After the carriages left the church, Harry was seen waiting for a car. He was later seen at Heathrow airport. His son Archie turned 4 on Saturday and was rumored to be back for his birthday.
Shortly after, King Charles III and Queen Camilla stepped out onto the balcony of Buckingham Palace to wave to the crowd gathered below. They were joined by William, his wife, Kate, three children and other senior royals.
