Queen Camilla stays neutral amid ongoing rift between King Charles and Prince Harry

United News of India

9 hours ago

London, June 7 (UNI) Amid continuing tensions between King Charles and Prince Harry, Queen Camilla has chosen to remain neutral, staying away from the discord that has fractured the British royal family.
The Queen "stays out of it", a source told PEOPLE in this week's exclusive cover story.
The family's fractures came to light when the Duke of Sussex and his wife, Meghan Markle, stepped back from their royal roles in 2020, and today, the deep divide between the King and Harry remains one of the most painful fissures in his reign.
Since then, the chasm has widened through a cascade of media exposés, a Netflix docuseries and Harry's incendiary memoir, 'Spare', in which he notably characterised Camilla as a manipulative figure intent on restoring her public image, allegedly at the expense of his own.
"I had complex feelings about gaining a stepparent, who I thought had recently sacrificed me on her personal PR altar," Prince Harry said in his memoir.
In an interview with Good Morning America in 2023, he further explained: "She had a reputation or an image to rehabilitate, and whatever conversations happened, whatever deals or trading was made right at the beginning, she was led to believe that that would be the best way to doing it."
Still, Harry struck a tone of reluctant civility, noting: "We haven't spoken for a long time. I love every member of my family, despite the differences. So when I see her, we're perfectly pleasant with each other. She's my stepmother. I don't look at her as an evil stepmother. I see someone who married into this institution, and done everything she can to improve her own reputation and her own image, for her own sake", reports PEOPLE.
King Charles is currently undergoing treatment for cancer, adding pressure to reconcile with Harry before it's too late. Although both were recently in North America, they didn't meet.
In 'Spare', Harry opened up about his conflicted feelings surrounding his father's marriage to Camilla and alleged that she traded information with the press to salvage her public image. There has been a desire to reconnect at times, but "the underlying issue is trust", according to royal biographer Sally Bedell Smith.
"The King and William don't trust Harry and Meghan with any kind of confidential conversation," Bedell Smith says.
Insiders add that King Charles isn't encouraged by his inner circle. The Prince of Wales has shown no interest in extending an olive branch, and senior aides like Clive Alderton, who was targeted in 'Spare', are unlikely to encourage outreach.
"There is not a good angel in his ear to say, 'Be a good dad and make the first move,' " says Valentine Low, author of the upcoming book 'Power and the Palace'.
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