Henry of England landed this Tuesday, February 6, at Heathrow airport in London, after his father, King Charles III, informed him by telephone that he suffers from cancer.
The Duke of Sussex, escorted by two police cars - despite his dispute with the British Home Office over police protection during visits to the United Kingdom with his family - crossed the gate of Clarence House shortly after arriving, and according to British media father and son have had a brief meeting.
The two have not met since May of last year, and have not interacted since the death of Queen Elizabeth II, in September 2022. A few hours after Buckingham Palace announced Charles III's illness on Monday, the prince moved to the Los Angeles airport (California), where he has lived with his family since 2020, to get on a plane, without his wife and children, which in about 11 hours left him in the British capital.
The prince has not spoken face to face with the king for more than a year.
His trips to the United Kingdom have been punctual and brief since the death of Queen Elizabeth II, on September 8, 2022. His last trip was in September last year, when he attended a charity ceremony for the NGO WellChild, a few days in those who did not share any moment with his father, but did take the opportunity to visit his grandmother's grave in Windsor.
Last June he also set foot on British soil, on that occasion to commiserate in court after suing the editors of the British newspaper
The Mirror
for defamation.
The ruling of the judge, Timothy Fancourt, was made public in December 2022 and he sentenced the tabloid to pay 160,000 euros in favor of the duke.
According to British media reports at the time, he did not meet the monarch on that occasion either.
And, like now, he made all those trips without the company of his wife, Meghan Markle, and the couple's two children.
More information
Shock, some relief and suspicion: the first hours in the United Kingdom after the announcement of Charles III's cancer
The last meeting occurred in May 2023, when Henry of England traveled to London to attend his father's coronation.
His visit was very brief.
He attended the ceremony at Westminster Abbey, and immediately afterwards flew back to Los Angeles, where his wife, Meghan Markle, was, and his children did not attend.
According to what was published then, he did not even go to Buckingham Palace, where the first official photos of his father as king of England were taken, accompanied by other members of the British royal family.
The contacts between the Duke and Duchess of Sussex and the palace have been punctual since the prince published
In the Shadow
, a book of memoirs in which he made strong accusations against his brother - recounting a fight - or Camilla;
in addition to a documentary on Netflix, together with his wife, in which they reveal in six chapters the alleged abuses they experienced as active members of the royal family.
However, Lady Di's son contacted his father by phone in November last year to congratulate the monarch on his 75th birthday.
The British media understood the call as the first approach after the media storm that accompanied the biography and the documentary, since, during the conversation, the dukes congratulated the monarch and his two children, Archie (4 years old) and Lilibet (4 years old). 2 years old), they sang
Happy Birthday
to their paternal grandfather.
Prince Harry lands back in the UK to visit King Charles after cancer news https://t.co/vuCCKQtsZQ
— BBC News (UK) (@BBCNews) February 6, 2024
The disease has been made public after weeks of secrecy in the information that the palace has shared.
It was two weeks ago when the Princess of Wales underwent abdominal surgery about which little is known, and for which she has had to cancel her official schedule until at least Easter.
A week after the operation, Carlos III was admitted to the same hospital, The London Clinic, to undergo surgery for prostate hyperplasia, which doctors then diagnosed as benign.
During the operation, it was discovered that the king finally suffered from cancer, which he wanted to share this Monday “to avoid speculation and in the hope that he can help all those affected by cancer,” as Buckingham's statement announced.
British media such as
The Mirror
and
The Times
describe this visit as a possible seed of father-son reconciliation.
However, it is not known if there will be a rapprochement between the duke and his brother William, whom he called violent in his memoirs, among other things.
The Prince of Wales has doubled his agenda of events after learning of the king's illness: this Wednesday he will reappear for the first time after a few days of absence to be by his wife's side.