Prince Harry’s latest move regarding the Royal Family has sparked a stern reaction from a royal source who accused him of “hypocrisy”. The Duke of Sussex paid a poignant tribute to his grandfather, the late Prince Philip, in a personal letter secretly left at the National Memorial Arboretum on the 80th anniversary of VJ Day.
Harry asked a friend to discreetly leave the note and a wreath of red poppies at the Burma Star Memorial in Staffordshire last Friday, following the national commemorations attended by the King and Queen. The letter was placed after Charles and Camilla left to avoid distracting from the service, which honoured the sacrifice of World War 2 heroes who fought and died in the Pacific and Far East.
But Harry’s move has “provoked a sceptical reaction” from people who knew the late Duke of Edinburgh, reports have now claimed.
According to the Mail, a source close to the royals blasted the Duke for causing Philip “hurt” during the last years of his life.
They said: “What hypocrisy. Harry hurt his grandfather deeply during the final year of his life.”
Philip died on April 9, 2021, aged 99. Just a few weeks later, on March 7, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex gave their bombshell interview to Oprah Winfrey, while the late Philip was in hospital due to his declining health.
Harry and Meghan made a series of allegations during the Oprah interview, which further intensified the rift between them and the Firm.
The outlet’s Richard Eden described Harry’s latest move as “striking” after no other working members of the Royal Family left wreaths.
He cited another royal source who claimed that the fact that Harry was able to “hijack” the national service of remembrance has caused “unease at the palace”.
Harry, who was thousands of miles away in California, wrote: “For me, this anniversary carries an added layer of meaning.
“My late grandfather, Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, served in the Pacific campaign. He spoke with quiet humility about those years, but I know how deeply he respected all who stood beside him in that theatre of war.
“Today, as I think of him, I think also of each of you, of the shared hardships, the bonds forged, and the legacy you leave.”
The late duke was in Tokyo Bay on board the destroyer HMS Whelp, a warship he served on as second-in-command, when Japanese officials formally signed the surrender on the USS Missouri.
The King, who previously spoke publicly about his father’s wartime role on the 75th anniversary in 2020, made no mention of Philip in his audio address to the nation on Friday morning, marking 80 years since VJ Day.
But he did pay tribute to his mentor and great uncle, Earl Mountbatten, who oversaw the defeat of the Japanese offensive towards India as Supreme Allied Commander South East Asia Command.
