An insider has claimed that Prince Harry and King Charles maintained “weekly” contact over the phone before the monarch’s recent letter clarifying his son’s non-royal status, which reportedly halted their regular correspondence.
The 41-year-old Duke of Sussex, along with his wife, Meghan Markle, 45, and their two kids, Archie, seven, and Lilibet, five, touched down in the United Kingdom two weeks ago to embark on a new life after living in the United States for six years.
An insider told Woman’s Day this week that the King, 77, and his second son had been in “direct contact” in the weeks since the Sussex family arrived back on British soil, but “not anymore”.
“Now their communication is back to going through one of his advisors after the last call became somewhat heated,” they told the publication.
“Their phone calls had been on a weekly basis and were nothing more than a typical exchange of pleasantries about the kids, their schooling and various logistics around seeing them.
“But since the Sussex statement, Charles is not engaging with Harry directly until ‘cooler heads prevail’,” the well-placed source adds.
Reports of Charles and Harry’s phone correspondence were backed up by royal reporter Bronte Coy, whose sources confirmed that the father and son had been in direct contact.
“I can tell you, actually, just from this morning, I’ve heard. They haven’t met face to face yet,” she revealed on The Morning Show on Wednesday.
“But my understanding is that they have spoken on the phone.”
However, claims of Harry and Charles’ communications are in direct contrast to previous reports that father and son haven’t spoken since the big move.
According to The Mirror, an insider alleged that the Duke had not scheduled a call or meeting with the King since informing his father of his decision to relocate with his wife and two children.
On Monday afternoon, UK time, the King issued official guidance on the Duke and Duchess’ positions within the Royal Family, noting that there would be “no change” to their current status and that their styles as His and Her Royal Highness “remain in abeyance and are not used”.
The letter also made clear that the couple are not working members of the Royal Family, adding that their position is “akin to private citizens with commercial and charitable interests”.
However, a spokesperson for the couple issued a response to the media just hours later, revealing they had been caught off guard by the statement.
“We were a little surprised not to have been told about this in advance,” it read.
It has since been revealed that the Sussexes had insufficient time to seek clarification on several points in the letter before it was made public, having only received its contents an hour earlier.
The Telegraph has claimed that the Duke of Sussex took particular issue with the notion that the couple were to be treated as private citizens, with the royal preferring the term “public figures”.