Prince Harry rejected an opportunity to sort out any grievances with his elder brother Prince William as he reached out to make amends.
Harry and William have been estranged for years and are reportedly ‘not on speaking terms’ with each other as the rift has escalated since the Duke’s Netflix docuseries and his bombshell memoir.
According to Courtiers: The Hidden Power Behind the Crown, William tried to reach out to Harry after his interview in 2019 during his South African tour with Meghan Markle had aired.
Harry had hinted on the brewing feud between the royal siblings talking about the “pressures” of being part of the royal family.
“We are certainly on different paths at the moment, but I will always be there for him, as I know he will always be there for me,” Harry said at the time. “We don’t see each other as much as we used to as we are so busy.”
He continued, “But I love him dearly and you know the majority of the stuff is probably — well, the majority of the stuff is created out of nothing. But as brothers, you have good days and you have bad days.”
Following the interview, William “WhatsApped” his brother to ask if he could come and see him. Harry agreed to meet and then asked who would come to know of their meeting.
In response, per the book, Courtiers, “William explained that he’d have to clear his schedule, which would mean telling his private secretary. At that point, Harry told him: ‘Don’t come.’”
Harry was “so concerned that William’s team would leak the visit to the Press that he would rather not see his brother than risk it getting into the papers.”
The book added the failure of the meeting was “heartbreaking” for those close to the two brothers.