Published September 10, 2026
The reconciliation plan between King Charles and the Sussexes had been headed in the right direction over the course of few weeks, but all seem to have gone awry once again.
The letter issued on Monday by the Lord Chamberlain at the behest King Charles reaffirmed the status of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle as “private citizens”. The Sussexes were taken off-guard by it as per their spokesperson.
This had been the first sign of friction between the King and Harry in the weeks that followed their reunion at Highgrove House. Archie and Lilibet met their grandfather for the first time in years and it appeared both parties were on good terms.
However, sources reveal the King and his second son were on civil terms and speaking, but are back to communicating via their advisors.
“Harry and Charles were in direct contact when they first arrived in the UK, but not anymore,” a royal insider told Woman’s Day. “Now their communication is back to going through one of his advisors after the last call became somewhat heated.”
Although there is one way the monarch could reconsider resuming contact with Harry.
“Their phone calls had been on a weekly basis and were nothing more than a typical exchange of pleasantries about the kids, their schooling and various logistics around seeing them,” the source continued. “But since the Sussex statement, Charles is not engaging with Harry directly until ‘cooler heads prevail’.”