The galette des rois has a little bitter taste this year in Buckingham. After announcing to everyone's surprise, and without even notifying the Queen, that he wished to withdraw from his obligations within the Palace, Prince Harry must meet this Monday his grandmother, his father Prince Charles and his brother, Prince Harry. His wife, Meghan, who is currently in Canada, could participate by telephone. It will not take place in London but in the sovereign's private residence in Sandringham, in the east of England.
This unprecedented family reunion at the summit, urgently convened by Elizabeth II is literally akin to settling scores. Because among the subjects on the agenda is the amount of financial endowment that Prince Charles has so far allocated to Harry and his wife Meghan. An allowance which they wish to give up in order to have the right to earn money.
The question of their royal titles also arises, like that of the commercial transactions that the spouses would henceforth be authorized to make, in accordance with their common will to emancipate themselves from the supervision of the Palace. But why does Harry have a tooth against the crown? "Harry has no reason to take the throne (Editor's note: he is sixth in the order of succession to the Queen) , so he wants to break the moorings", deciphers the specialist in crowned heads Stéphane Bern. As for his wife Meghan, who left to join her son Archie, aged eight months, she clearly wants to flee "the media pressure".
A form of caprice for the British
The former American actress, who became Duchess of Sussex after her marriage to Harry, has for months been the target of British tabloids who point out her supposed whims and her luxurious lifestyle. "Meghan should have suspected that by marrying Prince Harry, she was marrying 60 million Britons", underlines Stéphane Bern who sees in this desire to take refuge across the Atlantic a sign of "ill-being" but also a form of " whim ”. Caprice because the couple obviously wants to keep their royal titles and the use of the cottage they occupy on the grounds of Windsor Castle.
"They do not completely break the link because they want their cake and eat it, the rights granted to the royal family without the duties associated with it," strangles Stéphane Bern who still does not believe that Harry made this shock announcement last Wednesday via Instagram, without informing the Queen. A grandmother who, however, adores her. "She has had all the indulgences for him since his mother Diana died, especially since he is more fragile and more unstable psychologically than his older brother," explains the host.
A sign of the depth of the crisis, William, precisely, said he was "saddened", deploring having moved away from his little brother, with whom he had been very close since the death of their mother in 1997. "I spent arm in arm with my brother all our lives and I can't do it anymore, we are separate entities, "he told a friend, according to remarks reported by the Sunday Times.
Financially, Harry in any case does not really have to worry. According to Stéphane Bern, he has between 20 and 30 million euros on his account. As for the Frogmore cottage, the house they occupy on the grounds of Windsor Castle, the state paid for its restoration. What weighs more and more on the Queen's grandson are the obligations linked to his function. “Being a prince is not just a status, it is a job because you have to agree to serve the crown and participate in many operations, including charity. You can't say you want to continue enjoying the palace life while betraying the Queen. The British have already decided: 81% believe that the couple should not receive any financial support from the royal family and 46% that they should give up their titles.
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VIDEO. "This withdrawal will not make them freer"