Prince Harry's Decision To Leave The Royal Family Was 'An Enormous Slap In The Face,' Expert Says
Prince Harry has always been a rebel — especially when he left the U.K. and decided to move to California with his wife, Meghan Markle, in 2020.
"For Prince Harry to make the decision to say, 'I'm stepping back, I don't want to be a royal,' that is an enormous slap in the face for the Royal Family as an institution itself," royal expert Duncan Larcombe said in ABC's documentary, Royal Divide: Harry, Meghan and the Crown.
He continued, "So, Harry was summoned to see the boss of the family."
The meeting was held at Sandringham — and Queen Elizabeth, Prince Charles and Prince William were all present.
In the documentary, Finding Freedom co-author Omid Scobie noted the chat lasted two hours, and Harry went into the discussions "hoping to see his grandmother who always had a soft spot for him."
Shortly after, the Queen issued a statement about her grandson's actions.
"Although we would have preferred them to remain full-time working Members of the Royal Family, we respect and understand their wish to live a more independent life as a family while remaining a valued part of my family," she said in a statement. "Harry and Meghan have made clear that they do not want to be reliant on public funds in their new lives. It has therefore been agreed that there will be a period of transition in which the Sussexes will spend time in Canada and the UK."
Even though Harry's brood was less than pleased with his decision, it looks like if Princess Diana were still alive, she would have thought moving to the U.S. was a good idea.
"Oh, absolutely, unquestionably – she was doing the same thing," Diana's former vocal coach Stewart Pearce — who wrote Diana: The Voice of Change, which was released on June 15 — exclusively told The Royal Observer. "And she knew the principal pressure that Meghan was under was the fact that she was not being listened to, and of course, as we know, Meghan is this brilliantly articulate highly intelligent amazing woman of the world."
