Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are now back living in the UK. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have made the decision to quit their home in Montecito, California, and move back to Britain with their two children, Archie and Lilibet, who are already enrolled in schools here in the UK.
The couple, who quit both Harry's home country and their roles as senior working royals in 2020, are said to be heading back in the next few weeks with their children starting school in September. They are believed to be moving to a non-royal residence outside of London, although they will not be resuming their former roles within the royal family.
Harry's longing for home
A source has claimed the move is something Prince Harry has been thinking about "for some time". The source told People magazine: "Harry never really stopped missing home. He’s missed that sense of connection and belonging. Britain is still home in many ways."
Another source added: "Meghan feels very fortunate that they’re able to give Archie and Lilibet the opportunity to experience both worlds."
King Charles and Prince William are said to have been told about Harry and Meghan's plans, which were revealed last week, at the same time.
Wales' determination to move forward
William and Kate are said to be determined not to be drawn into the "drama" surrounding Meghan and Harry. Friends of the Prince and Princess of Wales have said that while they "cannot forgive" the Sussexes for their accusations against the royal family during their time in America, both in high-profile interviews and in Harry's memoir, Spare, the Prince and Princess of Wales are determined to "look forward to the future".
However, the two couples were once believed to be close and were even nicknamed the 'Fab Four' following a joint appearance. Harry and Kate had shared a close bond ever since she joined the royal family, and the Duke of Sussex once referred to her as "the big sister he never had".
The turning point
It had been hoped that when Harry began his life with Meghan Markle, the two women would also form a close bond, but this was short-lived. Less than two years after marrying in a lavish ceremony at Windsor, Harry and Meghan had quit their roles as working royals and fled to America.
Several high-profile interviews, including one with American talk-show royalty Oprah Winfrey, followed, along with a Netflix series about their time in the royal family and Harry's memoir, all of which levelled a series of brutal accusations at his family.
However, it was another issue that is believed to have caused Princess Kate to effectively "give up" on her in-laws. In the biography, William and Catherine: The Intimate Inside Story, Mirror Royal Editor Russell Myers includes their private reactions to Harry and Meghan's behaviour, both before and after Megxit.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex had been followed by rumours that their staff were bullied, with the claims going back to their wedding, and the royal family were said to be concerned about the allegations.
Staff concerns and fallout
Prince William is said to have reached out to his brother at the start of 2019 to ask him directly about Meghan's behaviour towards their staff in the palace. This is believed to have led directly to the 'fight' between the two brothers, which Harry said ended with William pushing him into a dog bowl. The Prince of Wales has never spoken about the incident, but sources close to William have described Harry's memories as "massively overblown".
In Spare, Harry claimed William had "echoed the narrative of the tabloids", calling his wife "difficult", "rude" and "abrasive". While those close to the future king could not confirm the exact words he used, they noted "it would have been a fair assessment if he did".
Meanwhile, Kate and William had worked hard to assemble a happy team around them and cultivated a positive working environment. In contrast, staff working for Harry and Meghan were unhappy to the point they were walking away, suffering with their mental health, or simply not wanting to come in or be on engagements on duty with the couple.
It became a major issue for the Prince and Princess. According to Myers, Kate, who had for so long been the voice of reason in the brothers' fallings-out, decided she could do no more.
The book says: "Catherine has always favoured reason over conflict. It was how she had been brought up, in a household that resolved differences with dialogue rather than by bearing grudges. At first she had thought William and Harry's squabbles were rooted in immaturity or stubbornness, on both sides, but Harry and Meghan's attitude towards palace staff, who she and William cared about, set the couples on an entirely different course."
It came to a head after Harry and Meghan's wedding. One source who knew both couples well at this time suggested William and Catherine felt the Sussexes had 'an agenda'. A source said: "They definitely thought the Sussexes' behaviour stemmed from something more than being difficult. The whole atmosphere between them was pretty toxic. Meghan was being bullish, Kate found her abrasive. There was definitely a hope from her side [Catherine's] that William could try and talk to Harry and settle things but that didn't exactly happen… and at the end of the day, she had three young children, who were her focus and if anything she saw the inevitability of the parting of ways, although perhaps not to the extent of what eventually happened."
