King Charles has a great relationship with many of his family members, including his grandchildren, Prince George, Prince Charlotte, and Prince Louis. Sadly, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet live in California, on the other side of the globe, and their relationship with their grandfather is reportedly non-existent.
By all accounts, it appears as King Charles won’t see his US-based grandchildren soon. Prince Harry has made it clear that he won’t bring his wife and children to the UK without getting the protection he feels is needed. To that end he has reportedly asked his father to help him arrange said protection, which the king – if rumors are to believed – is unable to do.
Harry and Meghan Markle have been accused of ’emotional blackmailing’ the king by using their children to attain the aforementioned security, but Charles is said to be desperate to see Archie and Lilibet.
Now, a new report suggests that Harry’s children have become a central point in the ongoing feud between Charles and Harry, and may be the reason as to why the king won’t cut his son off entirely.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have put themselves in a tricky situation with the Royal Family. With all that has been said about the monarchy, it’s unsurprising that the likes of Prince Wiliam and Kate Middleton seem to want nothing to do with them.
However, one person who appears to still be at least ready to maintain a working good relationship with them is King Charles, and his motivations may well lie with his two grandchildren, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet.
King Charles’ relationship with Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet
The complicated relationship with Harry and Meghan has resulted in King Charles not being able to see his grandchildren in the US. As stated, Harry views bringing his family to the UK as a security risk as he can’t be promised the protection he feels is necessary.
“All it takes is for one lone actor who reads this stuff to act on what they’ve read. And whether it’s a knife or acid, these are things that are genuine concerns for me. It’s one of the reasons why I won’t bring my wife back to this country,” Harry said in the ITV documentary Tabloids On Trial.
The question of the Sussexes’ security in the UK has been discussed for a long time now. Harry has fought it in court and is set to do so again in the near future.
According to People, Harry is preparing to appeal a court ruling that upheld the decision denying him state-funded security in the UK. An insider told the US news outlet that Harry wants his previous security rights reinstated, which in the long run would mean more flexibility when he, his wife, and their two children choose to visit the UK.
But though the matter of security is essential for Harry there is, sadly, another layer of importance it plays. According to a royal insider, speaking to People Magazine, whether Harry and his family get security when visiting the UK or not will play a crucial role in the Duke’s relationship with his father.
“Harry is frightened and feels the only person who can do anything about it is his father,” the royal insider told People.
Another source added: “Harry is determined to protect his own family at all costs.”
“A massive hole in his heart”
While the lack of protection has left Harry feeling unwilling to bring his wife and children to the UK, King Charles is heartbroken about not seeing his grandchildren, Archie and Lilibet. A source close to the king even accused Harry of ’emotional blackmailing,’ adding that the Duke has pretty much threatened his father that he’ll never again meet Archie and Lilibet.
The source told the Daily Beast that Harry wants to pressure Charles into using his influence to help the Sussexes get increased security when visiting the UK —only time will tell whether or not this tactic has any chance of working.
That Harry feels he can’t bring his children to the UK due to security issues is, of course, saddening. The problem only becomes all the more tragic when looked at from King Charles’ perspective, as the king is effectively being prevented from seeing Archie and Lilibet.
To date the monarch has reportedly only met them a few times. The last time was years ago, meaning it’s unclear if the children (Archie is 5; Lilibet 3) even properly remember seeing their royal grandfather.
King Charles is said to be heartbroken about not having a relationship with Archie and Lilibet. Meanwhile, a US Weekly source said the non-existent bond with his US grandchildren has “left a massive hole in his heart that he’s only spent a few fleeting days with them and then video calls on important days.”
The source added that Charles has a very close relationship with Prince William and Kate Middleton’s children, Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis, and that he “longs for the same relationship with his US-based grandkids.
While it’s heartbreaking that Charles, as a grandfather, can’t see his grandchildren, the question remains as to whether he could’ve made it more accessible.
King Charles “desperate to see” Archie & Lilibet
In June, royal expert Tom Quinn spoke with the Mirror, arguing that Charles’ eviction of Harry and Meghan from Frogmore Cottage in 2023 following the release of Harry’s tell-all memoir Spare has made things even more difficult.
“King Charles would love to be closer to Harry and to have a relationship with his son that actually works,” Quinn said. “But this depends on Harry giving his father cast-iron guarantees that there will be no more books and no more embarrassing interviews.”
The royal expert claimed Charles had been discussing possibly visiting the US out of desperation to fix the feud with Harry and see his grandchildren.
Queen Camilla agrees, and Quinn said she had made an “encouraging effort” to help Charles boost the bond with Archie and Lilibet by urging him to send Lilibet a “heartfelt gift and card” for her third birthday on June 4.
“Charles has had discussions about an official visit to the United States at some time in the future, and there is no doubt if it goes ahead, he would build in time to visit his youngest son and his grandchildren,” Quinn added. “But there are mountains of planning to be overcome before that becomes even a remote possibility.”
The royal expert concluded: “King Charles has privately visited many other countries—he made an unpublicized visit to Transylvania, for example, to check up on his rental properties—so it’s certainly possible that he would make a discreet, private visit to Harry and the children in California. He is desperate to see them and hates the idea that Archie and Lili will not remember him as the warm, friendly grandfather he wants to be.”
It should go without saying that the many accusations Prince Harry has leveled at the Royal Family have not served him well personally. His brother, William, won’t speak to him at all, his mother-in-law, Queen Camilla, wants nothing to do with him, and the once-strong bond with his father lies in tatters.
Prince Archie & Princess Lilibet “written out” of royal narrative, expert says
The Sussexes visited both Nigeria and Colombia earlier this year, and both trips appeared to do wonders for their standing on the world stage. The British royals, though, were said to have been furious about it, viewing Harry and Meghan’s actions as those of a couple who are still behaving as though they are an active part of the monarchy.
Every August, the Royal Family gathers at Balmoral to spend time together. At the same time, the “royal summit” also includes meetings about what is to come. According to the Express, one subject this year was Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. A source told the UK newspaper that discussions were held about whether Harry should even be kept in the line of succession.
For Archie and Lilibet, not getting to visit the UK not only means that they don’t have relationships with their grandfather, but they also miss out on forming bonds with their royal cousins, Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis.
When King Charles attended the Japanese State Visit banquet in June, he cracked a joke about Pokemon, saying that the famous Pokemon phrase ‘gotta catch ’em all’ “may resonate with my grandchildren.”
Royal expert Kate Mansey spoke about the subject on the podcast Royal Confidential, stating: “The first thing you think of is the Waleses because he doesn’t have that connection to the Sussex grandchildren.
Mansey argued whether Harry and Meghan have become so distant that “it’s just so written out of the narrative,” meaning that when Charles mentions his grandkids, it’s assumed he means Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis.
“You don’t even think now, ‘Oh, wonder which grandchildren he’s thinking about,” Mansey said, per the Express. “You think of Charles talking about his grandchildren, the first thing you think of is the Wales’, because he doesn’t have that connection to the Sussex grandchildren.”
King Charles “keener than ever” to build a relationship with Harry & his children
Meghan Markle’s father, Thomas Markle, spoke with the Daily Mail in June, claiming that Archie and Lilibet are being “denied the right” to get to know their cousins.
“It struck me as very sad that Meghan and Harry’s kids are being denied the right to know their cousins, who look like fantastic children, or take part in things like Trooping the Colour, which is their birthright,” Markle said.
“They are getting to the age where they will start to ask questions, as all kids do,” he added. “I find myself wondering how Archie and Lilbet will feel in a few years’ time when they realise all the things they have missed out on.”
King Charles has only had the opportunity to speak with Prince Archie and Prince Lilibet through FaceTime. That, he feels, is inadequate. According to a Mirror source, the king is not ‘content’ only seeing them through video.
He’s reportedly “keener than ever” to focus on his family, making up for “lost time” after he had to step back from many of his royal duties when he was diagnosed with cancer.
“The King is absolutely committed to being present in all of his grandchildren’s lives. He values family above everything and whatever the course of his relationship with his son he would never be content with just seeing his grandchildren on the odd video call,” the source said.
Prince Archie & Princess Lilibet is the reason why King Charles “never breaks ties with Harry”
Royal expert Ingrid Seward, author of My Mother and I – The Inside Story of the King and Our Late Queen, added that “family has always been important” for King Charles.:
“He remembers his own somewhat fragmented childhood as his parents were always busy doing their duty. It is a great sadness to him he doesn’t see more of Archie and Lilibet,” she told the Mirror.
“That is why he will never break ties with Harry. He does not want a FaceTime relationship with his son’s children. He wants to know them and be involved with their lives while they are still young enough to be able to learn from his wisdom. His cancer has made it all the more poignant to him as he knows that he won’t be around for ever.”