Prince William’s recent appointment as the new Captain-General of the Royal Marines sends Prince Harry an important but heartbreaking message.
During an interview with the Royal Beat, Battle of Brothers author Robert Lacey said that there will be ramifications now that Prince William has accepted the role.
Lacey said that the Duke of Cambridge accepting the role will mark the rift that he has with Prince Harry. It will also show that there’s no turning back for the Duke of Sussex.
Before quitting The Firm, Meghan Markle’s husband has always been vocal about his love for the military. Other than his passion for the Invictus Games, his active service is also another thing that he’s extremely proud of.
In fact, even after Prince Harry and Markle quit The Firm, he still held on to the role of Captain-General. It was only after he made a comment about the US elections that the role was taken away from him.
Initially, Queen Elizabeth left the position open for Prince Harry if and when he decides to return to The Firm. But there are reports that the role has already been given to Prince William, which shows that it’s the end for him.
Meanwhile, Lacey also said that the spares in the royal family aren’t typically given official roles. But Prince Harry’s appointment as Captain-General was an exception. Now that the role has been taken away from him, Lacey said that it must be even more devastating for the former royal.
Prince Harry, even though he’s "the spare," was also allowed to serve in Afghanistan. But during Prince William’s time, he wasn’t allowed to serve in Afghanistan because he’s an heir to the throne.
Royal historian Tessa Dunlop added that this must be the reason why it’s even more heartbreaking for Prince Harry to lose the honorary title. After all, this is the one thing where he could outshine Prince William.
Duncan Larcombe, a royal historian, agreed with the other experts. He said that the only thing that Prince Harry was able to excel in was his military career.
Larcombe also said that the troops loved him and the superior officers also loved how Prince Harry would go the extra mile and exert efforts to help his peers.
“Harry knows that of all the members of the modern royal family he has the biggest entitlement to honor the military and to be there in those ceremonial roles. He's the one that’s earned the right to wear the medals,” he said.