In remarkable scenes following the Queen’s death last year, the Prince and Princess of Wales joined the Duke and Duchess of Sussex for a stroll around Windsor.
To many, the couples’ joint walk – reportedly William’s idea to put on a show of unity – seemed like a reconciliation of sorts.
But it was later reported that Kate found her walk in Windsor with Harry and Meghan after the Queen’s death “one of the hardest things she’s ever had to do.”
The Princess of Wales told a senior royal that it was so difficult for her because of the “bad feelings” between the couples, veteran royal correspondent Robert Jobson said in Our King, published in The Daily Mail and The Mail on Sunday.
In remarkable scenes following the Queen’s death last year, the Prince and Princess of Wales joined the Duke and Duchess of Sussex for a stroll around Windsor
Kate and William’s appearance with Harry and Meghan to greet well-wishers and view the flowers outside the gates of Windsor Castle came two days after the Queen’s death at the age of 96 last September
The The surprise appearance marked the first time the two couples have all been together in public since Commonwealth Day on March 9, 2020.
And it was the first time William and Harry have been seen together in public since attending the opening of the memorial in honor of their mother, Princess Diana.
It is believed the Sussexes had not previously made plans to meet the Waleses, despite staying at Frogmore Cottage, just 650 meters from William and Kate’s Adelaide Cottage.
But both William and Harry rushed to Balmoral on Thursday after it became clear the Queen’s health was failing.
It was later revealed tThe king ordered his warring sons to put aside their ongoing feud ahead of the queen’s funeral, reuniting the couple in public for the first time in more than a year.
Royal sources say Prince William tried to bury the hatchet by extending an ‘eleventh hour olive branch’ to his younger brother Prince Harry, asking him to join him on a walk outside Windsor Castle after a phone call with his father Charles.
A source at Kensington Palace said the Prince of Wales had invited the Sussexes to join him and the Princess of Wales on the walk.
However, according to The Times, the camps required extensive negotiations beforehand, delaying their arrival by 45 minutes.
A senior Palace source said: ‘The Prince of Wales previously invited the Duke and Duchess of Sussex to join him and the Princess of Wales.
‘The Prince of Wales said it was an important show of unity for the Queen at an incredibly difficult time for the family.’
The Sussexes’ friend and favorite journalist, Omid Scobie, later claimed on Twitter that the invitation had been made at the ‘eleventh hour’.
However, he hinted that William is willing to extend an olive branch to Harry and work on melting the ice between them: “It is without a doubt an important moment in the history of the relationship between the two brothers.”
And for a few minutes, it seemed as if the warring couples had slipped back in time, before bitterness and harsh words had destroyed their relationship.
The Prince and Princess of Wales headed to Windsor to inspect the sea of floral tributes laid outside the gates of the Berkshire estate in tribute to the late Queen, who died at Balmoral days earlier.
They were joined by Harry and Meghan during the engagement, which marked the first time the two couples had all appeared in public since Commonwealth Day on March 9, 2020, just weeks before the Covid lockdown.
As they made their way to the floral tributes, Kate and William walked mostly separately, occasionally reaching out and touching each other. Meanwhile, Harry and Meghan stayed in touch most of the time, often holding hands
The two couples, who had not been officially seen together since March 2020, appeared to keep their distance from each other (photo L-R: The Princess and Prince of Wales, and the Duke and Duchess of Sussex)
The royals, once dubbed the ‘fab four’, were greeted with applause as they walked past the gates of Windsor Castle together.
However, things didn’t seem to be going well among the feuding couples, who sometimes seemed uncomfortable in each other’s company.
Body language expert Judi James told FEMAIL at the time: ‘This is a phenomenal and unexpected scene that shows some natural caution and awkwardness in the body language, although as a statement of intent it seems choreographed as a loving tribute to the Queen and in some ways the new King, who perhaps took the first step in speaking about his love for Harry and Meghan in his recent speech.
The four stand together to suggest some form of unity, and it is William, with his puffed chest and confident appearance, who looks like the leader and instigator. Harry performs some clothing-touching fear rituals, but Meghan appears to be there to offer comfort, support and encouragement.”
As they walked past the gates of Windsor Castle together, temporarily putting aside the differences created by the Sussexes’ departure, they appeared to keep a considerable distance from each other.
The couples only met briefly at the beginning and end of the engagement.
For the remainder of the walk, which is believed to have lasted about 30 minutes, Prince William and Kate, and Meghan and Harry, appeared to stick to their two couples – perhaps instructed by their aides – and barely interacted during the somber event .
During the walk, the royal family inspected the sea of floral tributes laid outside the gates of the Berkshire estate in tribute to the late Queen
The two couples seemed to interact very little, but remained separated
During the walkabout, the four of them sometimes split up to greet and speak to the audience individually
During the walkabout, the four of them sometimes split up to greet and speak to the audience individually.
When the four got out of their vehicle, the couples spoke with an unknown man, believed to be an assistant. At one point during the conversation, Harry stepped back towards Meghan, and the pair listened while locked in an embrace, with the duke’s arm around his wife’s waist.
As they began walking, with the two men standing side by side, with their respective wives flanking them on the outside, William and Harry appeared to have a brief conversation, while Kate and Meghan looked straight ahead.
Sometimes Kate seemed to stand some distance from the group.
“Kate looks somewhat distant, even though she was close to William when the couples somewhat broke up,” Judi said.
When they reached the gate, the two couples stopped to look at some of the floral tributes left by well wishes.
Harry and Meghan stayed close to each other at the start of the event, and when separated they often reached out to hold hands.
After speaking to the crowd, the couples headed to their separate vehicles. At one point the two duchesses appeared to avoid eye contact (pictured)
According to Judi: ‘As the couple hold hands, Harry’s fingers wiggle downwards, while Meghan’s are curled around his palm, her thumb gently caressing his hand. She performs touches on his back and small strokes and other draws, and there are times when she is the one looking across to communicate with William and Kate.”
As the royals began the long walk to Windsor Castle, the couples separated, each going to one side of the crowd, which cheered on both couples. The four greeted the audience within their respective pairings, but also separately.
Once they finished meeting the public, they reconvened in front of their vehicles, where they had a brief conversation before getting into their respective cars.
Describing the general tone of the meeting, Judi told FEMAIL: ‘There are no signs of relaxed engagement or even affection here, but the fact that they are queuing together and communicating again is impressive in itself.
‘It’s a mature approach from the new Prince of Wales and it could have broken a lot of ice in terms of their body language at the funeral and afterwards.’
Later, Robert Jobson said sources close to the royal family confirmed to him that the show of unity was an “illusion.”
“Catherine later admitted to a senior royal that, because of the bad feelings between the two couples, the walk together was one of the hardest things she had ever had to do,” he wrote.