Daniela RelphSenior Royal Correspondent
PA/Reuters
Prince Harry and his father have not met for more than a year
For five years, there has been anger, frustration and a deep family divide in the royal center. The rift between King Charles III and the Duke of Sussex is painful for all the rifts involved and carried out in public. It's hard to find a solution. But there are signs that tensions are eased and a new understanding between father and son.
Prince Harry returned to the UK in less than two weeks. He held a court hearing on security here for the last time in April. At that time, his father was in Italy during a state visit, so the possibility of meetings was not at the table.
This time the situation is different. There is no significant difference, but if we follow the evidence, there are signs of slight change in mood.
First, the king will be in England. He will be at the Balmoral estate in Scotland. Harry could go to Scotland, but we know that the King often travels south for cancer treatments and some royal activities, which opens up the opportunity to see his son in person.
After the King's diagnosis was made public, the last time it happened on February 6, 2024. It was a flight visit literally.
The Duke of Sussex landed at Heathrow Airport and was taken directly to Clarence House. The next morning he flew to the United States and saw his father staying for more than half an hour.
Then there is the Duchess of Sussex, the Duchess of Sussex, England and the United States, who now represents Harry and his wife Megan.
In July, Los Angeles-based Meredith Maines, headquartered in Los Angeles, led the communications team around Harry and Meghan, who flew to London to visit a number of charities and media organizations, including BBC News, along with her British counterpart, Liam Maguire.
But this is not the dramatic development of these conferences. A photographer took them together with King Communications Secretary Tobyn Andreae at the club of the private member club. The images were posted in Sunday's email under the title “Secret Harry Peace Summit.”
The photographer’s just right place remains a mystery, and both sides deny that they took him away. A few years ago, meetings like this seemed unimaginable. They can all sit at the table and discuss their positions that they both find themselves showing that both want things to be different.
Then, when Harry was in the UK, the end of the court case was provided by the security guards in the home office – he lost the case.
Getty Images
Duke and Duchess of Sussex leave Britain after withdrawing from official duties in 2020
The legal lawsuit is deeply troubled by Buckingham Palace, which regards it as the king's son suing the king's government through the King's Court.
When it works, father and son do not speak to each other. However, Harry, 40, did have an exclusive interview with BBC News in May with reporter Nada Tawfik.
“I'm happy to reconcile with my family,” he said. “I don't know how long my father has been. He won't talk to me because of these security…but it's going to be nice to reconcile.”
To some, these words are clumsy and sound harsh on the health of their fathers, especially as the 76-year-old king continues to be full of diaries during cancer treatment and speaks of being energetic by his public duties.
Despite recent history of hatred and distrust, all of this has brought about a slight shift in the possibility of reconciliation and willingness.
The awareness of life is also very short.
In Harry's best-selling memoir, Resoir fueled the family's frustration, with Duke recalling his grandfather, Prince Philip, and then the funeral of Duke of Edinburgh.
Harry wrote that Titch's chat ended with his father's intervention. “He stood between us and looked up at our faces: Please boy-don't let my last few years be painful.”
They were before any cancer diagnosis, and the father was king, and his 70s man tried to find a way through the consequences of his family.
These are Harry’s memories of the situation, and as we know, “recollections may vary.”
Prince Harry says he can't see a world, his wife and children will visit the UK and demand reconciliation with his family
Trust is still an important point. Buckingham Palace will want to ensure that any family meeting details remain private. In speeches to both sides this week, the unified position has absolutely no explanation for the possibility of meeting between father and son in public.
Buckingham Palace has been in its long-term position without personal details about the relationship between the king and his youngest son. Harry and Meghan's team are taking the same approach. There is nothing to share officially.
But does the shared silence indicate that, after years of the next stage of public pouring, perhaps one of the reconciliation, will stay away from the camera without big fanfare?
We will first see Harry in London when we attend the Wellchild Awards ceremony on September 8. He has been a patron of the charity, which has provided support for seriously ill children and their families for 17 years.
“I’m always honored to attend the Wellchild Awards and meet incredible children, families and professionals who inspire us all with their strength and spirit,” he said. “Their stories remind us of the power of compassion, connection and community.”
It will be the start of Harry's days of activity, and he will strengthen his ties with the UK and the organizations he supports here. Even after moving to the United States, he remained a cheerleader for many charities.
In May, he made a “major personal donation” to a Nottingham charity to provide food parcels to vulnerable families. On Sunday commemorating, Scotty's little soldiers are a charity supporting children who have lost their military parents who have obtained candy from Harry for all the young men participating in the military parade.
His ties to Britain remain strong. The pain and division between both sides have been deeply felt and this big problem needs to be overcome.
As a Royal correspondent, I have watched various episodes of this public conflict since 2020.
The gap between Harry and his brother William is still wide. At this stage, the prospect of sibling reconciliation is no longer there. It is understood that they will not talk to each other, and the injuries on both sides are running deeply. The positions are deeply ingrained, and they have harsh protections for their wives and family and rebuild their brotherly bonds and trust, which feels like a long way.
But the king is different.
Harry visits the UK next month, the best opportunity for a father-son relationship, finding the peace that has been missing for several years.
As Prince Harry said in an interview with the BBC: “It’s meaningless to keep fighting…life is precious.”
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