Prince William could not believe how his brother, Prince Harry, and sister-in-law, Meghan Markle, replied to Queen Elizabeth after Buckingham Palace announced that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have expressed they won't return to their royal roles after Mar. 31.
William is, reportedly, shocked and upset about Harry and Meghan's statement and felt that they insulted and disrespected Her Majesty, per The Sunday Times.
On Friday, Queen Elizabeth, through Buckingham Palace, accepted Harry and Meghan's decision to remain as public servants but not as working members of the royal family. Their choice has punctuated what would have been a full-year review at the end of March of their life outside the royal fold.
For a full year, Queen Elizabeth has put off assigning someone else to take on Harry and Meghan's roles as they stepped back from their royal duties in early 2020. She told the couple that there will be a review after 12 months but Harry and Meghan jumped the gun and told the Queen in talks this February that they want to be completely out.
Harry and Meghan also released a statement, where they said that the life of "service is universal." It was this statement that shocked William as it seemed to be a snipe against their grandmother, per sources close to the Duke of Cambridge.
The sources also said that William and Harry's mending relationship is still raw, following their rift over Harry's decision to marry in haste. However, another report in The Sunday Times stated that William has high hopes his relationship with Harry will be completely repaired even as their work ties are now different.
Harry was supposed to be behind William when the latter becomes the next king. That was their path together as the heir and the spare. However, the Duke of Sussex decided to go on a different path when he married Meghan and both said that they want to do other things other than their royal work. They also want to earn financially and not rely on the money they get from the Sovereign Grant as working royals.
However, Queen Elizabeth was determined to put duty over family and told Harry personally that he and Meghan cannot continue supporting their patronages and royal roles if they are going to venture commercially. Some royal aides said that Harry was warned that they could not be "half-in half-out" in their royal duties. This prompted the Sussexes to finally agree to give up the ties to their patronage, as well as Harry's military roles, even has been very proud of these responsibilities.
The Queen has yet to announce who will take on Harry's former military ties and his patronages with Meghan but sources said that she will not likely give the most high-profile roles, such as the Captain General of the Royal Marines, as it will further cause problems between the brothers. Meanwhile, Harry's patronage of the Rugby Football League wants William to take over though they said they will miss his brother since he has been a great ambassador. (Business Times)