News thatPrince Harrywould attendKing Charles' coronation withoutMeghan Marklelaid bare the complex feelings between the couple and the royal family.
Buckingham Palace announcedlast week that the Duchess of Sussex, 41, will stay back in California with the couple’s childrenPrince ArchieandPrincess LilibetwhilePrince Harry, 38, supports his father at the May 6 crowning ceremony in London. King Charles is said to be “pleased” his son will be there, but the wider reconciliation so many have hoped for within the family hasn’t happened.
“At this point, it’s become so personal,” a close friend tells PEOPLE exclusively in this week’s cover story. “Maybe what they wanted wasn’t achieved, but at the end of the day, he’s going there to support his dad.”
The ongoing rift betweenPrince Harryand his family was evident in late March, when the Duke of Sussex was in London for a court hearing in his claim against Associated Newspapers but didn’t see his father King Charles or brotherPrince William.
“Things are strained,” says a palace insider.
The coronation will be bittersweet forPrince Harry, who, in addition to attending without Meghan, likely has no official role and is not expected to participate in any ofthe other planned events, including a Buckingham Palace balcony appearance. However, a source who knows the royals tells PEOPLE Harry “will happily go along with whatever the plan is” and that his main concern about attending was the issue of his security, which has been addressed.
Prince Harry.DANIEL LEAL/AFP via Getty
With Prince Archie’s4th birthdayfalling on the same day as King Charles' coronation, Meghan will be able to celebrate their son at home alongside his little sister, Princess Lilibet, 22 months.
“It’s an elegant solution,” royal biographer Sally Bedell Smith, author ofGeorge VI and Elizabeth, tells PEOPLE, adding that Archie’s birthday “gave them a reasonable out for Meghan not to come.” But those closest to the couple know that the media backlash Meghan faced in the U.K. duringQueen Elizabeth’s funeral last year — and in the seven months since — played a significant role in her decision not to come.
“Meghan wants to be there to support her father-in-law, but at the same time, the scrutiny she receives outweighs the support,” the close friend says. “There’s always going to be that other side challenging their reasoning, and who wants to put themselves in that position?”
A palace insider also tells PEOPLE, “It would have been quite significant if Harry hadn’t attended his father’s coronation, but I’m not surprised Meghan isn’t going given the circumstances.”
Prince Harry, Prince Charles and Meghan Markle.Getty
Meghan’s relationship with her in-laws seemingly started on a positive note. King Charles memorably stepped in for Meghan’s father,Thomas Markle, and walked her down the aisle of St. George’s Chapel on herroyal wedding dayin 2018.
But behind the scenes, tensions were mounting within the family, eventually leading to Meghan andPrince Harry’s 2020 announcement that they were stepping back from their royal roles.
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Whatever happens duringPrince Harry’s upcoming trip to the U.K. — where he will likely stay atFrogmore Cottagefor what could be the last time following King Charles’sdecision to evictHarry and Meghan from their U.K. home — “he will look back on it and think it is better to come and play his part and say, ‘I saw my father crowned,’ " says a source close to the royal household. “And tell his children about it.”
source: people.com
