The British Royal Family made a small reconciliation in their rift with the Duke of Sussex by wishing Prince Harry a happy birthday on social media for the first time in three years.
Harry is celebrating his 40th birthday on Sunday at his home in California with Meghan and his two children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibeth, before heading out to meet close friends, according to reports.
The royal family’s official social media pages, which run by King Charles’s office at Buckingham Palace, featured a post celebrating Harry’s milestone birthday, which reads as follows: “Wishing The Duke of Sussex a very happy 40th birthday today!”
The Prince and Princess of Wales shared the royal family’s post on their Instagram Stories accounts and on platform X, adding their own celebratory message. “Wishing a Happy 40th Birthday to the Duke of Sussex,” the caption above the photo read.
Harry relinquished his duties as a member of the royal family in 2020 and still remains estranged from his brother William, Prince of Wales, and has a strained relationship with his father, King Charles. Many see these first birthday messages in many years as a potential hint of a reconciliation from King Charles and Prince William.
Thereafter, meetings have been rare and at times extremely limited. In February, Harry flew to the UK to see his father after the royal diagnosed with cancer. But the meeting was limited to just 45 minutes and there was no meeting with his brother. In May, he travelled to London again to celebrate a decade of the Invictus Games and attended a service at St Paul’s Cathedral, but did not meet his brother or father.
He briefly returned to the UK in August for the funeral of his uncle Lord Fellowes when he stayed at Althorp, the family estate of his late mother, Diana, Princess of Wales. He reportedly did not engage with William at the church service.
Relations between father and son have not improved since a positive meeting in February, and communication between the two has since broken down. Those close to Prince Harry say the monarch no longer returns his son’s calls or responds to his letters.
