‘What He Won’t Accept Is Defeat’: Prince William’s ‘Very Instrumental’ Ultimatum Over Prince Harry and Meghan Markle Puts King Charles in a Bind
Prince William reportedly wanted King Charles to draw a harder line with Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. A source close to William backed Charles’ decision to confirm the Sussexes remain non-working royals. The move came weeks after Harry and Markle returned to Britain with their children.
On September 7, Buckingham Palace issued a letter on Charles’ behalf confirming their status. It was sent to senior British officials following “a number of requests for guidance” about the couple. Harry and Markle remain private citizens with commercial and charitable interests.
According to Closer, an insider said William was “very instrumental” in getting the letter issued and viewed it as “a big win.” The source claimed the outcome gave William hope that Charles was beginning to see the situation more clearly.
The source added, “William is not going to stop pushing until the King agrees to take away their titles. He hates that he has to constantly raise the issue with his father.” They continued, “It’s caused a lot of strife between them, if it means protecting the monarchy and protecting his father from making a colossal mistake, it’s worth it to William.”
William wanted Harry and Markle to stop “trading” on their royal status. “They’re doing everything on their own terms and not running a thing by the palace.” He reportedly believes that “they are benefiting from their connection to the monarchy.”
The tipster added, “He thinks it’s egregious that they can make all this money off their royal status after everything they’ve said about the family. They want to have their cake and eat it too, and his father is just standing back allowing it to happen.”
According to the insider, the Prince of Wales wants their position settled now. He reportedly doesn’t want the issue hanging over the family for years. The source also stated William reminded Charles about the arrangements made when Harry and Markle stepped down in 2020.
William reluctantly accepted that this could take longer than expected. “What he won’t accept is defeat,” the insider said. The situation also coincided with a development involving the Invictus Games. On September 9, Uganda announced it would withdraw from the 2027 Games in Birmingham.
Harry’s team linked it to Charles’ letter. However, according to ITV, it couldn’t confirm whether the letter caused Uganda’s decision. Buckingham Palace also rejected claims that its guidance had been confused.
Uganda later reversed the decision. On September 14, Kainerugaba spoke with Sir Clive Alderton, Charles’ principal private secretary. Chris Mahesh, Uganda’s Acting Director of Defense Public Information, said Alderton told Kainerugaba that Charles had “no problem with Uganda’s participation.”
Alderton also encouraged Uganda to continue preparing for the Games. Uganda then confirmed its participation. But according to Closer’s source, “The fact that His Majesty did allow that letter to go out gave William a lot of encouragement.”
It’s “because he knows how badly it landed with Harry. It was a very obvious shot and incredibly embarrassing.” The source claimed William viewed Charles stepping in as a “huge mistake.” The insider also claimed William wants Charles to “totally wash his hands” of the situation.
