Prince Harry shared a close bond with his late grandmother Queen Elizabeth II, but this didn’t stop the Duke of Sussex from being nervous around her when it came to seeking permission for all things wedding related in 2017.
Before her death in 2022, the late Queen – as monarch of the country – was the one who members of the Royal Family asked for permission when they wanted to marry.
This meant that before proposing to Meghan Markle, Prince Harry, now 40, had to seek permission from Her Majesty to marry the American actress, which the late Queen agreed to.
However, this was not the only difficult question Harry had to ask his grandmother when it came to planning his 2018 Windsor wedding.
In his 2023 bombshell memoir Spare, Harry opened up about the fact he had to seek permission to keep his beard for his wedding, especially as he was to wear his military uniform.
This was considered a big deal as to have a beard while in uniform was seen by some to be a violation of the rules, with certain royals – such as Prince William – having not been allowed to keep their beards when wearing uniform.
The duke wrote: “After all the stress of asking Granny for permission to marry Meg, I thought I’d never have the courage to ask her for anything else.
“And yet I now dared to make another ask – Granny, please, may I, for my wedding, keep my beard?”
“Not a small ask either. A beard was thought by some to be a clear violation of protocol and long-standing norms, especially since I was getting married in my Army uniform. Beards were forbidden in the British Army.”
The duke then shared in his memoir that the late Queen allowed him to keep his facial hair, especially after finding out it made the prince feel calmer.
However, according to the duke – who quit life as a senior royal less than two years after his wedding – other members of the Royal Family were not happy he received this approval.
Prince Harry, who has lived in America since stepping back from the Firm in 2020, said that his brother Prince William seemed annoyed at the fact Harry was allowed to keep his beard.
Harry said William’s annoyance came after he wasn’t allowed to keep his beard for his 2011 wedding to Princess Kate. Instead, Prince William – who also had to ask the late Queen for permission to marry – was clean-shaven for his big day, the opposite of Harry’s groom look.
