Prince Harry felt ’emotional and demoralised’ after a significant decision made by the late Queen Elizabeth, according to a royal author. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have made many sacrifices since they stepped down as working royals, but one loss affected Harry the most after he moved to Montecito, California, with Meghan Markle and their two children Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet.
In his memoir Spare, Harry stated that he never wanted a complete break from the Royal Family or the Royal role he was raised with. Instead, he hoped for a more blended approach. However, the palace quickly dismissed this idea, insisting that the Sussexes were either fully in or out.
As a result, Harry found himself outside the Royal fold, losing his patronages, automatic police security, and eventually his Windsor home – Frogmore Cottage – gifted to him and Meghan by the late Queen Elizabeth.
Harry has voiced serious worries about losing his automatic right to police protection when he visits the UK. However, Royal authors suggest another ‘painful’ decision by the late Queen Elizabeth affected him most deeply, reports the Mirror.
Prince Harry was reportedly “emotional and demoralised” after being stripped of his military titles when he stepped back from Royal duties. After moving to California with Meghan in 2020, the Duke of Sussex was forced to give up his beloved roles in the British Army.
Harry promised to stay connected with servicemen and women after he left the forces in 2015. According to authors Omid Scobie and Carolyn Durand of the book ‘Finding Freedom’, this part of ‘Megxit’ was what Harry found most “demoralising”.
The book states: “If his grandmother’s validation of his experiences served as encouragement, the most demoralising aspect of the new deal was his being stripped of his honorary military appointments that had been awarded to him as a senior royal.”
It continues: “As a retired serviceman, Harry would always be able to wear his medals, but no longer could he wear uniform as Captain General of the Royal Marines, Honorary Air Force Commandant of the Royal Air Force Bas Honington, and honorary Commodore-in-Chief of the Royal Navy’s Small Ships and Diving Operations. These roles had come to an end.”
A source revealed to the authors: “That’s been a tough pill to swallow, and the one that has been most painful to Meghan witness him go through. It’s the one that made Harry emotional.”
