Tessa Dunlop is one of the few royal historians/commentators who refuses to adhere to the strict royal propaganda line. Dunlop has been, at times, critical of King Charles and Prince William, and the Sussexes as well. She’s one of only a handful of historians who actually understands that the current royal estrangements are horrible for the Windsors and for Britain. On Prince Harry’s birthday, Dunlop wrote this piece for the Independent: “Harry at 40 might miss Britain, but the uncomfortable truth is we may miss him more.” As in… the Windsors’ and British media’s obsession with Harry is pretty obviously about how everything fell apart for that family when the charismatic ginger prince left. Some highlights from Dunlop’s piece:
The first Invictus Games in 2014: In front of a 2 million-strong television audience, alchemist Harry had successfully melded the disarming qualities of his late mother with royalty’s powerful service platform. The effect was electric. The closing ceremony of those first Games coincided with his thirtieth birthday, when he “danced, sang and celebrated being alive.” Proof, if any were needed, that Harry was born to serve.
The Sussexes’ royal tours: It’s the duke’s aptitude for service that’s the main stumbling block for those who remain on the other side of the Atlantic. Royal stalwarts huff and puff about Harry’s hypocrisy; how dare the duke steer his ship into the rocky waters of Nigeria and Columbia, when he complains Britain, minus security, is unsafe for his young family. (Alongside the service gene comes a heft of entitlement, another hallmark of royalty.) But Harry’s princely expectations should not detract from his achievements: whether people like it or not, together with his savvy duchess, the Sussexes cut a dash in countries long resistant to Britain’s privileged royal brand. The then Cambridge’s 2022 Caribbean tour doesn’t bear comparison. The bitter note in Britain’s coverage of the Sussexes’ ‘DIY royal tours’ speaks for itself. Long may we wonder if Harry misses Britain, anything rather than invert the question and admit Britain misses Harry.
Harry always had more rizz than William: Always the more charismatic of the two, a new-age Harry, comfortable in his own skin, joshing with the kids in Colombia, is jarring for William. Even now, when a Cold War keeps the two siblings apart, the Prince of Wales finds himself inadvertently playing catch-up with little brother Harry. It was the duke who first defied royal rules to sport a stubbly beard, and long before Kate’s sumptuous, scripted recovery film, it was Harry and Meghan who produced heavily curated versions of their healing journeys.
The Sussexes understand the zeitgeist: The couple’s infuriating knack of identifying the zeitgeist and running with it, has kept Sussexes in the headlines, that’s why we tune into their effortless overseas spectacles and pour over the minutiae of their lives. When it comes to being royal – a toxic cocktail of privilege, service and celebrity – the Sussexes have nailed it. Back in Britain that hurts.
Charles must take the lead on reconciliation: Charles knows his reign is not for the long term and must now take the lead when it comes to mending father-son fences. It is one thing to feel threatened by a sibling, quite another by a child. That Charles does not like to be upstaged is yet another reason for him to make the first move. Wearing the mantle of kingship, as England’s Defender of the Faith, Charles can’t busk his reputation on man-hugs with rugby players and simultaneously leave a gaping wound at home. Time is of the essence…[In] Harry’s relationship with Charles, he’ll always be the child, and in his forties will continue to behave like one. In this royal equation, the King, as a parent, bears the brunt of responsibility. Ten years ago, Charles was proud of his ‘darling boy’. Today, he may wish him well, but he must dig deeper and find a vestige of that pride once more.
They need Harry’s fairy dust: Redemption and forgiveness are powerful forces in our fractious world, likewise the embrace of difference. The King sits on the British throne, there is no greater stage in the United Kingdom. To reach out and reconnect with Harry, who has forged a different path with his birthright, would inadvertently win back some of the Duke’s fairy dust for Britain. But the King must make the first move. Harry has another forty years in front of him, and even William may be glad of the day when his brother is not constantly cast in opposition to the royal family.
I just appreciate it when, after all of the ink spilled about “Harry must apologize” and “why isn’t Harry coming back” and “Harry must be so jealous of William and Kate’s awful video,” there’s at least one British person stating the obvious. That Charles and William are sick with jealousy over Harry’s life and success, that they’re mad that he took his star power far away from them, that Harry makes his father and brother look like charisma-vacuums. Britain does miss Harry. The Windsors were also slow to realize that Harry was the one keeping the whole sorry thing relevant.
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