Prince Harry has reportedly found it “difficult” being in Prince William’s company at times over the past week.
The two brothers, who have been estranged for a number of years, have been forced to spend time together since their grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II, died on Sept. 8.
A source close to Harry told the Sunday Times of London that although being in each other’s company has been “uncomfortable” for the brothers, “everybody is trying their best.”
The Prince of Wales, 40, and the Duke of Sussex, 38, delighted royal fans last week when they appeared alongside their respective wives, Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle, viewing floral tributes and cards laid outside Windsor Castle in honor of the late monarch.
The outing, however, was marked by awkward body language displayed by both Markle, 41, and Middleton, 40, who appeared uncomfortable during their reunion.
On Tuesday, the former “Fab Four” seemingly put on a united front as they sat down for dinner together with other royal family members after receiving Queen Elizabeth II’s coffin.
Saturday evening, they also stood vigil — alongside their cousins — by the late monarch’s casket.
Prince Harry wore his military uniform after getting special permission from King Charles III. He had previously been forced to wear civilian clothes at public events since the Queen died due to being stripped of his military titles when he stepped down from his royal duties in 2020.
However, the duke was said to be “devastated” to discover that his uniform had his grandmother’s “ER” initials stripped from the shoulder.
“He is heartbroken,” a friend told the Sunday Times of London. “To remove his grandmother’s initials feels very intentional.”
The two brothers also shared a brief encounter earlier this week when William — who was collecting his kids, Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis, from school — drove past his brother and Markle while they were in a separate car. They reportedly drove past each other but then stopped, reversed and rolled down their windows for a brief chat.
Despite this chance meeting, the truce appears temporary.
A friend of the brothers revealed that the joint appearances “take effort” and they both understood it was needed to show “solidarity.”
“I don’t think it goes much beyond that. There have been some awkward moments this week,” the source told the Sunday Times of London. “I definitely don’t get the sense of any deeper meaningful rapprochement or a sense that this is it: Things will be mended.”
The brothers’ relationship has been frosty since at least 2019, when Harry shared in an interview that he and William were “certainly on different paths at the moment.”
Relations receded further when the Duke and Duchess of Sussex — who quit royal life in 2020 and moved to California — sat down for a bombshell interview with Oprah Winfrey last year.
Markle recently gave another interview in which she claimed that she and Harry were “upsetting the hierarchy … just by existing.”
She also fired a warning shot at the Palace by noting, “I’ve never had to sign anything that restricts me from talking … I have a lot to say until I don’t.”
Harry also has a memoir coming out early next year that is reportedly full of truth bombs.
“There’s a lot of new stories in there about the past that Harry has not spoken about before, about his childhood,” a source told Page Six, adding, “There is some content in there that should make his family nervous.”
Friends of Harry previously shared that while his fraternal relationship is still raw, he could not be happier or more fulfilled by his family dynamic with Markle and their children, Archie, 3, and Lilibet, 1.
Sources close to him also alleged to the aforementioned outlet that his recent return to the UK and the royal family brings an ache of “regret over a missed opportunity of what could have been” and regret that “it didn’t have to be this ugly.”
