{"id":694232,"date":"2026-01-14T00:17:15","date_gmt":"2026-01-14T00:17:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/694232\/"},"modified":"2026-01-14T00:17:15","modified_gmt":"2026-01-14T00:17:15","slug":"why-prince-harry-still-feels-torn-between-america-and-the-u-k-excl","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/694232\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Prince Harry Still Feels Torn Between America and the U.K. (Excl)"},"content":{"rendered":"

On Christmas Day, King Charles III<\/strong> and his wife, Queen Camilla<\/strong>, led the royal family to and from St. Mary Magdalene Church for the annual Sandringham walk. Prince William<\/strong> and Princess Kate<\/strong> followed with their three children, Prince George, 12, Princess Charlotte, 10, and Prince Louis, 7, who warmly engaged<\/a> with members of the public, politely shaking hands and accepting gifts. Princess Eugenie<\/strong> and Princess Beatrice<\/strong> were also in attendance, smiling alongside their husbands on the crisp, picture-perfect morning.<\/p>\n

More than 5,000 miles away in sunny California, Prince Harry<\/strong> <\/a>spent the holiday<\/a> with his wife, Meghan Markle<\/strong>, and kids, Archie, 6, and Lilibet, 4. It marked his seventh year of absence from U.K. festivities, and he feels the sting. \u201cI miss the weird family gatherings when we\u2019re all sort of brought together under one roof for certain times of the year. That I miss,\u201d he told the BBC in May. Adds royal author Christopher Andersen<\/strong>: \u201cDoes it pain Harry to be pointedly excluded from times when the royal family<\/a> gets together, like Christmas at Sandringham? Of course it does.\u201d<\/p>\n

Harry, 41, has made a new life for himself with Meghan, 44, in the exclusive enclave of Montecito, where they bought their $14.6 million mansion<\/a> in 2020. He\u2019s taken up surfing and has been photographed riding his bike on local streets and playing fetch with his black lab, Pula, on the beach. But he remains torn between two worlds. \u201cOn one level, Harry is content in California,\u201d says Andersen, noting that on another, he must regret that \u201cneither he nor his children are sharing in their royal heritage.\u201d<\/p>\n

There\u2019s much to love about his new lifestyle<\/a>, away from royal rules and 24\/7 surveillance. \u201cHarry is so happy living in the private world,\u201d a source tells Us Weekly. \u201cEven though he was raised [as a royal], he was never comfortable in that environment. He feels more like himself here.\u201d The source says the constraints of the monarchy could be tough on Harry. \u201cHe had this crazy schedule and would come back through the palace gates and couldn\u2019t go out or have a personal life.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"PrinceJohn Nacion\/Getty Images; Insets: Samir Hussein\/WireImage; Max Mumby\/Indigo\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

But freedom has come at a cost. One year after Harry and Meghan left their royal posts in 2020, he was stripped of his honorary military titles<\/a>. (He served 10 years in the British Army between 2005 and 2015.) \u201cThat was extremely difficult because the military was a big part of his life,\u201d says the source. Andersen adds that being stripped of his military titles was \u201cpainful\u201d for Harry to endure, and notes that the Invictus Games<\/a> \u2014 which the prince founded in 2014 to honor wounded soldiers \u2014 \u201chas allowed him to stay connected to that world, and has been a lifeline for him.\u201d<\/p>\n

His royal responsibilities gave him structure and purpose. \u201cPeople often forget that Harry is at his core an army officer<\/a>,\u201d says Andersen. \u201cHe\u2019s all about structure, honor and duty \u2014 things that are missing from his life in Montecito.\u201d Adds royal historian Marlene Koenig<\/strong>: \u201cHarry\u2019s life was far more structured in the U.K. He had responsibilities and official events to attend.\u201d<\/p>\n

He and Meghan have been trying to find their professional footing in the States since their arrival. In August, their multimillion-dollar Netflix partnership was downgraded to a first-look deal<\/a>. He\u2019s been booking speaking gigs, including one at a real estate conference in Ontario, Canada, in early December. Meghan\u2019s With Love, Meghan <\/a>Netflix series debuted last March (there\u2019s no word yet on a third season) and her As Ever lifestyle line launched last April. Their 11th publicist recently resigned<\/a>, and their head of Archewell Philanthropies announced his departure in late December. \u201cAlthough Harry hasn\u2019t settled into a permanent position,\u201d says Koenig, \u201che\u2019s spending time with his young children and being a hands-on dad. Meghan is the breadwinner.\u201d<\/p>\n

While the source says the glare of the Hollywood spotlight is nothing new for Harry, Andersen says he\u2019s still \u201csomewhat uneasy with it,\u201d adding, \u201che has suffered from crippling social anxiety. Meghan embraces that life more.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"PrinceLOIC VENANCE\/AFP via Getty Images<\/p>\n

His inner circle<\/a> has changed. \u201cI miss my friends,\u201d he told the BBC in May, adding, \u201cI\u2019ve lost a few friends in this process.\u201d Koenig says some of Harry\u2019s former pals remain loyal to William and that he\u2019s no longer close with his one-time wingman Tom Inskip<\/strong>. (There are reports they reconciled.) \u201cA few old pals have dropped off,\u201d says Andersen, \u201cbut several remain in touch, and Harry is immensely grateful for their loyalty.\u201d<\/p>\n

\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\"Prince
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\t\t\t
\n Related: Prince Harry and King Charles III\u2018s Ups and Downs Through the Years<\/a><\/p>\n

\n\t\t\tWhen Prince Harry and wife Meghan Markle stepped down from their positions as senior working royals, the duke\u2019s relationship with father King Charles III dissipated. \u201cMy family literally cut me off financially, and I [needed to be able to] afford security for us,\u201d the Duke of Sussex alleged in his bombshell CBS interview in March [\u2026]\t\t<\/p>\n

Harry\u2019s heartbroken his children<\/a> aren\u2019t closer with his family members, and that they don\u2019t have a strong connection to England. \u201cThe things that [my kids are] going to miss is, well, everything,\u201d he told the BBC last spring, adding, \u201cI love my country, I always have done\u2026 and I think that it\u2019s really quite sad that I won\u2019t be able to show my children my homeland.\u201d<\/p>\n

In May 2024, Harry lost a legal battle for security<\/a> for himself and his family in the U.K. This January, The Mail on Sunday reported that, after review, the Sussexes would be allowed<\/a> government-funded protection after all. (A spokesperson for the Sussexes told Us they \u201cdon\u2019t comment on security matters.\u201d) Harry, says Andersen, \u201cwants Archie and Lilibet to get to know their British relatives, especially their grandfather\u2026 [and] their cousins, but he can\u2019t make that happen unilaterally. They\u2019re learning about Britain in small doses,\u201d Andersen adds of the kids, \u201cbut make no mistake, they\u2019re growing up Californians.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"PrinceLeigh Vogel\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

Regardless of where Harry feels he truly belongs, the public still holds him to royal standards. \u201cHe\u2019s aware of the optics, but he\u2019s trying not to worry about it because he isn\u2019t a working royal,\u201d says the source, noting that it seems unfair for Harry to abide by standards set by them. He was criticized for attending Kris Jenner\u2019<\/strong>s star-studded 70th birthday bash<\/a> in November because it took place the night before Remembrance Day<\/a> in the U.K.; he and Meghan reportedly later requested Kris and her daughter Kim Kardashian<\/strong> remove photos<\/a> of them at the party from their social media feeds. \u201cHe wasn\u2019t as concerned about it as the royals were,\u201d says the source. Adds Andersen: \u201cHarry wore a poppy to the party in honor of fallen veterans. [This is] another example of how practically anything the Sussexes do is blown out of proportion.\u201d<\/p>\n

\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\"Where
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\t\t\t
\n Related: Where Harry and Meghan Stand With Each Member of the Royal Family<\/a><\/p>\n

\n\t\t\tFollowing their shocking step away from their senior royal duties in March 2020, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have distanced themselves from their relatives across the pond. Nearly one year after their initial step away, Buckingham Palace confirmed in February 2021 that Harry and the Suits alum were not going to return as working royals. [\u2026]\t\t<\/p>\n

He wishes he didn\u2019t have to choose between his old life and his new one. The source says that despite his September sit-down with Charles<\/a> (who announced in December that his cancer treatment is being reduced), Harry has no intention of returning to the royal fold full-time, but would be happy to step in when needed. (The source says that things between Harry and Charles \u201care going in a good direction.\u201d Andersen says William and Harry remain estranged<\/a>.)<\/p>\n

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\u201cHarry has always said the door remains open to some sort of relationship with the royal family,\u201d Andersen adds. \u201cMeghan\u2019s focused on their life in Montecito, but he\u2019s holding out hope that he can eventually divide his time<\/a> between California and the U.K.\u201d<\/p>\n

For more on Prince Harry, watch the exclusive video above and pick up the latest issue of Us Weekly<\/a> \u2014 on newsstands now.<\/p>\n

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