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The Queen “adored Harry to the end” and would have wanted the family to “fix things,” a royal historian claimed.
Robert Hardman, author of Queen of Our Times: The Life of Elizabeth II, believes Her Majesty was “one of the canals between Windsor and California.”
Speak with PEOPLE Magazine, he said it would have been one of the late monarch’s “dearest wishes” to bridge the rift within the family since Harry and Meghan announced they would be relinquishing royal duties in 2020.
Relations between the Duke and Duchess of Sussex and other members of the royal family have been tense since Harry and Meghan moved to California shortly before the coronavirus pandemic.
Relations between the Duke and Duchess of Sussex and other members of the royal family have been tense since Harry and Meghan moved to California. Family members in the picture last week
The Queen (pictured days before her death) ‘adored Harry to the end’ and would have wanted the family to ‘fix things’, a royal historian has claimed
The couple rolled up their sleeves and left Frogmore Cottage on the Windsor Estate, where they had lived while in the UK, and now live in a $14 million mansion in Santa Barbara with their children Archie, three, and Lilibet, a.
The move caused division in the family as tensions arose within Harry’s relationship with his brother Prince William and father, now King Charles. The divide appeared to widen when the Duke and Duchess of Sussex failed to fly back to the UK in March to attend Prince Philip’s memorial service at Westminster Abbey.
At the time, it was reported that the Duke was concerned about security arrangements for his family in the UK.
Despite the rift between the Sussexes and the rest of the family, there have been glimpses of a possible reconciliation after the Queen’s death.
On the Saturday after the monarch died, the Prince and Princess of Wales made their first public appearance outside the Windsor Estate to read the tributes bequeathed to Her Majesty and greet the mourners.
In an unexpected appearance, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex joined the couple as the ‘Fab Four’ were reunited in their grief.
The couple (pictured this month with Prince William and Kate Middleton) rolled up their sleeves and left Frogmore Cottage on the Windsor Estate, where they lived while in the UK
Her Majesty died on September 8 at the age of 96 in Balmoral Castle, after which her eldest son Charles automatically became king.
However, a source told PEOPLE the appearance was ‘awkward’ and both couples struggled.
“They were in a stoic spirit just to get through it for the Queen,” the source said.
Mr Hardman’s claims come after an explosive new royal book claimed Her Majesty was ‘hurt’ by Harry and Meghan’s decision to leave The Firm.
In an excerpt from the book, The New Royals: Queen Elizabeth’s Legacy and the Future of the Crown, published in Vanity FairAuthor Katie Nicholl quoted an unnamed source as saying the Queen was reluctant to ponder the Duke and Duchess’ decision to step down as senior royals.
The source told the author: “[The Queen] was very hurt and said to me, ‘I don’t know, I don’t care, and I don’t want to think about it anymore’.
The source added that Her Majesty was more sorry that the Sussexes’ move meant she hadn’t been able to see as much of Archie and Lilibet as she would have liked.
Her Majesty died on September 8 at the age of 96 at Balmoral Castle, at which time her eldest son Charles automatically became king.
King Charles (pictured Monday) also allowed Prince Harry, who served in Afghanistan, to wear his military uniform during a vigil last Saturday night
King Charles allowed Prince Harry (pictured), who served in Afghanistan, to wear his military uniform when he attended a vigil Saturday night during which he guarded the Queen’s casket in Westminster Hall
The Princess of Wales, the Prince of Wales and the Duke and Duchess of Sussex walk to meet the public at Windsor Castle in Berkshire
As the monarch, the book claims that Charles is eager to heal the rift between the family and his youngest son Harry, 38.
In his first televised address to the nation on Sept. 9, King Charles said, “I also want to express my love for Harry and Meghan as they continue to build their lives abroad.”
Some royal fans have argued that the mention of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex was an ‘olive branch’ towards the couple, who happened to be visiting Europe when the Queen died.
King Charles also allowed Prince Harry, who served in Afghanistan, to wear his military uniform at a wake last Saturday night with the Queen’s other grandchildren, in which they guarded her coffin as it lay in state in Westminster Hall.
Despite no longer being a working royal, King Charles allowed his youngest son to don the military uniform so that he could honor his grandmother.
Nicholl’s book, however, claims that there have been previous attempts to smooth things over between the Sussexes and other royals over the past two years, which have somewhat failed.
The book reported that King Charles, who was then Prince of Wales, invited Harry and Meghan for tea just weeks after the Duke of Edinburgh’s memorial service, when the couple stopped in the UK before heading to The Hague to have a drink. Invictus Games event to attend.
However, an unnamed family friend told Nicholl that the meeting was “awkward” and lasted only about 15 minutes after the Duke and Duchess were late to meet the then Prince Charles and the then Duchess of Cornwall, Camilla.
They claimed: ‘[Harry] even suggested calling in a mediator to try and sort things out, which had Charles somewhat baffled and Camilla spitting in her tea.”
They added that the queen consort told the duke his suggestion was “ridiculous” and that they would resolve their differences within the family.