Prince Harry Had a Blunt Response After Charles Banned Meghan from Seeing Dying Queen: "Don't Ever..."

Prince Harry was reportedly left fuming after his father, King Charles III, instructed him not to bring his wife, Meghan Markle, to Balmoral Castle on the day of Queen Elizabeth II's passing. In his 2023 memoir Spare, Harry recounted the events of September 8, 2022, revealing how his father explicitly told him that Markle was not welcome to accompany him to see his ailing grandmother despite both being in the United Kingdom at the time.

“He said I was welcome at Balmoral, but he didn't want...her,” Harry wrote. The Duke of Sussex went on to describe his father’s reasoning as 'nonsensical, and disrespectful' and made clear he was 'not having it.' In response, Harry reportedly delivered an eight-word rebuttal to his father, “Don't ever speak about my wife that way.” Elaborating on the tense exchange, Harry claimed that Charles argued that his preference was to keep the gathering small

“He stammered, apologetic, saying he simply didn't want a lot of people around. No other wives were coming, Kate wasn't coming, he said, therefore Meg shouldn't,” Harry penned. As the day progressed, Harry faced further difficulties. He reported limited communication from other members of the royal family, which forced him to arrange his own travel to Scotland.

Royal author Rob Jobson shared a similar statement. He said, "Close sources said he had elected not to fly with his brother and uncles after a disagreement over Markle not being allowed to join him," as reported the Independent. Ultimately, his journey was delayed, and he arrived at Balmoral too late to say his final goodbye to the Queen, according to the Mirror. Harry described how he found out the sad news. "When the plane started to descend I saw that my phone lit up. It was a message from Meg, 'Call me when you get this.' I looked at the BBC website. My grandmother had died. My father was King."

Markle later joined the royal family in mourning during the funeral procession. The sad occasion marked her last public appearance in the UK since. Meanwhile, Harry has returned to the country on several occasions. His recent visits to the UK was in support for his father following his cancer diagnosis and to partake in events such as the WellChild Awards in September, earlier this year. 

Charles’ request to leave Markle behind on such a significant occasion added to what Harry described as a fraught period for him and his wife. Jobson also discussed the couple's relationship with the late Queen before her passing, noting that their 2020 departure led her to take firm steps to safeguard the monarchy she had led for seven decades. This decision followed Harry and Markle's proposal to 'carve out a progressive new role' as working royals, dividing their time between the UK and the US.