Harry's Family Meets King Charles After Four Years

The reunion followed years of estrangement. Harry and Meghan stepped down as senior working royals in 2020 and moved to California, after which their taxpayer-funded security in Britain was downgraded and made subject to case-by-case decisions by a government body, the Royal and VIP Executive Committee. Relations soured further with Harry's memoir, Spare, and interviews and a documentary criticizing their treatment by the royal household, straining his ties with his father and his brother, Prince William. The trip had been in doubt: the BBC (the British Broadcasting Corporation) reported that Harry was reconsidering bringing his family after his request for police protection was refused, and his representatives said he was exploring every option to let his children visit safely. The Daily Mail reported that palace officials had privately called the prolonged uncertainty wearying.

The meeting capped a punishing week for the Duke. On Tuesday, the High Court dismissed his long-running privacy claim against Associated Newspapers, publisher of the Daily Mail, ruling that phone tapping and other unlawful information-gathering could not be proven. Other claimants included the singer Elton John and the actress Elizabeth Hurley. The defeat contrasted with an earlier settlement in which The Sun's publisher paid substantial damages and apologized for phone hacking. On the day of the reunion, an observer told the Daily Mail that Harry had arrived beaming at an Invictus Games event near Birmingham; the following day he joined children for goat yoga at a military charity festival. Whether one private afternoon at Highgrove can produce a lasting reconciliation remains uncertain.