King Charles III “still loves his ‘darling boy’”, Prince Harry, but with Prince William, he wanted to send a “powerful message” of their unity.
King Charles III recently passed on the Colonel-in-Chief of the Army Air Corps baton to his eldest son, Prince William.
The emotional and profound act only came days after Prince Harry returned to the United Kingdom and flew over but refused to see or meet his father and brother at all; the rift in the father-son relationship is clear.
In an interview with OK!, former BBC royal correspondent Jennie Bond reveals that following the appointment of Prince William as Colonel-in-Chief of the Army Air Corps, the monarch was trying to send a “powerful message” to Prince Harry.
“I think it was an example of mutual support – the King handing a highly significant appointment to his older, loyal son – and Prince William showing that he is ready and willing to take on some of his father’s duties as and when the time is right.”
The former BBC royal correspondent claimed King Charles, 75, and Prince William, 41, shared a undoubtedly closed bond. “hey are the only two men in the country to experience or face the prospect of being monarch,” she told OK!.
“They have only one another to share very particular thoughts or concerns with about this unique role. With Harry no longer part of the picture, William has become closer to his father. As time goes by, I think the King will look to his eldest son more and more to uphold and protect the institution of monarchy.”
Bond claims Prince William and Charles both dealing a lot due to Kate Middleton and King’s cancer treatment, respectively, and that “must have brought them closer together, as they confide their feelings and fears to one another.”
“It’s lovely to see father and son together, with William towering over his dad, looking youthful and strong in spite of the emotional stress he must be going through with his father and wife under treatment for cancer,” she said.
Charles and William together snubbed Harry to send a message
The display of unity was clear when Prince Harry arrived in the UK but wasn’t able to meet Charles because of the monarch’s “full schedule.” But several reports suggest “difficult” Prince William was “preventing” Harry from meeting his father.
“There’s no doubt that the King is incredibly sad about his broken relationship with Harry and, of course, his almost non-existent relationship with his two grandchildren in California. But I think he sent out a clear message when he did not have time to meet Harry,” she added.
“The stress of a fractured relationship with his younger son in my opinion may be too much for him to handle at the moment. Charles is a very emotional man and it may be that the pressure of trying to untangle a complicated relationship with Harry right now is just not something he should be tackling when he is also fighting cancer.”
Bond clarified the outlet, “I believe that the King will always leave the door open for Harry, I’m sure he still loves his ‘darling boy’, but the time has to be right and at the moment the King’s focus is on getting well again as soon as possible and fulfilling as many diary engagements as his health allows.”
