Prince Harry’s six-year-old son Prince Archie will be anticipating a special family celebration, according to royal expert Jennie Bond, who has explained why the day may be tinged with sadness.
Prince Harry has endured a dramatic time of late continuing his legal battle over his security in the UK and making a secret trip to war-torn Ukraine. That coupled with wife Meghan launching her podcast series, Confessions of a Female Founder, as well as launching the first batch of products from her lifestyle brand As Ever, means life has been busier than ever for the Sussexes.
But Harry has still found time to carve out family time with Meghan and their children Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet by enjoying a spring break family getaway in recent weeks. The children are at the centre of Harry’s world with insiders describing their home life as “their happy bubble”.
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The children are now often carefully featured in Meghan’s Instagram posts, helping her to bake cookies in the kitchen, collect berries from their vast garden’s fruit bushes and whip up breakfast for the family.
And the Sussexes’ precious family time together looks set to continue when Harry’s eldest Archie turns six in the coming weeks. Mum Meghan showcased her hosting skills on her recent Netflix series With Love, Meghan, and even revealed how for one of Archie’s previous birthdays she created him an impressive rainbow balloon arch.
And former BBC royal correspondent Jennie Bond believes this bodes well for Archie having an incredible birthday celebration next week. She told OK!: “I’m sure Harry and Meghan will make his birthday magical and Meghan will obviously make it all very pretty and tasteful as well!”
However, any gathering may well be tinged with sadness for dad Harry as neither his estranged father King Charles nor brother Prince William, with his wife Kate and their children are likely to be involved in any celebrations. Despite Harry publicly declaring he would love to have his royal relatives back in his life, the rift between them could not be wider, meaning any trips by them to visit California seem to be out of the question for now.
Harry is said to be desperate to visit Archie and his daughter Lilibet, who is three years old, in the UK, but he feels that this is because his family’s police protection practices have changed. Earlier this month, Harry was in London at the Court of Appeal as he is challenging the decision regarding his security. His legal battle is said to be all about his desire to bring his children to the UK and let them learn about their heritage.
And Jennie believes it’s a fight Harry is determined to face head-on for his children – despite the costs. She explains, “I believe Harry is sincere when he claims to want his children to be aware of and comprehend their heritage. And he has stated in public that he wants to see his brother and father back.
“But we now also know that this issue of security is like a red rag to a bull for Harry. He says it is more important than any of his other legal battles. He has a deep-rooted sense of injustice – he believes there was some kind of conspiracy to keep him ‘trapped’ within the Royal Family and to prevent him and his family from leaving the UK. And he seems intent on proving that to be the case.”
While the fight rumbles on for Harry, Archie and Lilibet continue to grow up without knowing many of their royal relatives, including their cousins Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis. At one point, William and brother Harry seemed to be as close as can be as they navigated their grief together after their late mother Princess Diana’s death.
They appeared to retain their close bond as they got married and had families of their own but a breakdown in relations ensued when Harry and Meghan opted out of royal life. And for Jennie, it would have once been impossible to imagine how William and Harry raise their children without speaking on opposite sides of the Atlantic.
She explains, “I always imagined Harry and William being close and enjoying watching their children grow up together.” And I guess there must be times when they both think the same. However, there is no evidence that the cousins ever interact with one another.
“I’m sure it’s a great sadness for Harry because he probably has more time and reason than William to consider the rift he has caused.” But he has chosen a different life in a different country, and that looks as if it is where he will stay”.
Meanwhile, Harry’s grandchildren’s grandfather, King Charles, are missing out on their grandpa’s advancement. The monarch, who is still undergoing cancer treatment, previously told friends he is not content with only seeing his youngest grandchildren on video calls after meeting Archie only a handful of times and Lilibet once.
The King claimed he “couldn’t be more delighted” when he was born in May 2019, but the relationship wasn’t always that complicated, especially with Archie. The King’s former Clarence House Instagram account had a touching image of Charles proudly gazing at Archie when he was christened.
However, as Harry and Meghan decided to dramatically quit as working royals and up sticks from the UK and move to the United States in early 2020, the King has spent little time with his young grandson. Their last interaction occurred in 2022 when Archie and his parents arrived in the UK for the late Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations.
A source who was speaking at the time said: “The prince [King Charles] hasn’t seen his grandson Archie for a while, and it was very, very special to have some time with him. He hadn’t met Lili, his granddaughter, and so to meet her was very emotional, a very, very wonderful thing”.
And Jennie thinks that the King’s rejection of his two grandchildren is still a “great sadness” as well as Harry’s appearance in the modern era. She says: “He always loved Harry – he called him ‘ darling boy’. And I’m confident that he still adores Harry and looks forward to spending more time with Lilibet and Archie.
George, Charlotte, and Louis’ grandchildren, Charles is a sentimental man and devoted grandfather. And I’m sure as his struggle with cancer continues, he thinks more about the great loss of not being able to spend time with Harry’s children.
“Well, it would be very nice if the King, along with William and Catherine, made some sort of celebration of young Archie’s sixth birthday. After all, the unfortunate little lad is not at fault for everything that has happened. So I hope that, either publicly or privately, they do at least send the little boy their good wishes”.
Harry and his father, the King, both appear to have a low ebb relationship, which is described as “distant.” The King is said to be keeping his distance from his youngest son in order to prevent being drawn into discussions about security, and Harry’s calls and letters appear to have gone unanswered.
The security issue has long been considered to be a sticking point towards improving family relations between the Sussexes and the rest of the Royal Family, especially the King.
And Jennie continues, “Harry must now realize that he has placed his father in a particularly challenging position: suing the King’s own government.” And that makes it very difficult for Charles to have any conversations with Harry, even in the most difficult situations.
” I wonder whether Harry realised at the start of this case just how hard it would make any communication with his father. After the appeal judges’ decision is rendered, it will likely be time for everyone concerned to reevaluate the situation and assess the potential for improvement of family relations. Harry has made it absolutely impossible for things to get any easier by urging the court to take this case to the next level.
Source: Mirror
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