With his brother on a UK charm offensive last week, some critics have been quick to suggest that the Prince of Wales’s busy week of engagements was a last-minute bid to stop the Duke of Sussex dominating the headlines. Harry’s return to home soil was only publicly announced some two weeks ago, as his four-day trip has been about reasserting his ties with the charities and offices he cares about.
And while William’s engagements had not been publicly announced in advance, it’s folly to think that Kensington Palace quickly dreamed up some visits at short notice in a bid to overshadow the Sussex show. I’m told by a well-placed source that these visits have been long-planned and “in no way” were things altered “due to other things happening this week”.
While just eight miles away from each other on Monday, William and Harry did not meet and – though their engagements covered similar themes on the two subsequent days – this was simply a coincidence.
As for the volume of visits, it’s not accurate to claim it’s the first time the future king has conducted three consecutive days of public engagements in quite some time, as some have done.
Having spent time trawling through the court circular (the official record of royal engagements), I can confirm that, over the past 12 months, William has conducted at least three days of back-to-back engagements on five occasions –not including foreign trips.
The last time this occurred was at the end of April when the Prince and Princess of Wales spent two days working on the islands of Mull and Iona followed by William attending a reception at Windsor Castle for the Victoria Cross and George Cross Association alongside the King and Queen.
Other instances took place at the end of January, with engagements marking Holocaust Memorial Day and pioneering environmental solutions, the start of December, mid-November and the start of October.
Even when his wife was undergoing cancer treatment last year, William twice conducted public engagements on three consecutive occasions. And this tally doesn’t even include private audiences and meetings.
But one thing that remains clear from the brothers’ dogged determination to crack on with work at the same time, is that reconciliation or even a simple chat, remains a long way off. There is some hope that father and son might patch things up in the future, but when it comes to William and Harry, peace is a long way off.
This week marks what is set to be the most talked about royal engagement of the year: the Trump state visit. On Wednesday, the US President will touch down in Windsor for a three-day stay at the Castle. The first day will be marked by all the usual pomp and pageantry, an official welcome, a state banquet and speeches by both heads of state.
While politics will take centre stage on Thursday, with the Prime Minister set to host Mr and Mrs Trump at his country home, Chequers.
All eyes will be on the US President, with commentators waiting to pounce on any protocol breaches, controversial remarks and gaffes.
I’ll be interested to see who the special guests are at the evening banquet, as well as the carefully crafted seating arrangements. Will the Princess of Wales be sitting next to the guest of honour, as she did when Emmanuel Macron visited in the summer?
I’ll certainly be kept on my toes next week, and I’m looking forward to returning to my favourite royal residence to cover the seminal moment.
On Tuesday, the King will become the first monarch to attend a Catholic funeral in Britain in over 400 years. Charles, who is head of the Church of England, will attend a Requiem Mass at Westminster Cathedral for the Duchess of Kent.
Katharine, died on Thursday September 4 aged 92, converted to the Catholic faith in 1994 – the first royal to do so since Charles II’s deathbed conversion in 1685.
The Royal Family will come together on Tuesday to commemorate her life, with the Queen, the Prince and Princess of Wales set to attend the funeral.
Catherine Pepinster, former editor of the Catholic weekly, The Tablet, remarked that the attendance of both the King and heir marks “a huge step forward in ecumenical relations”.