The ongoing tension between King Charles and his estranged son, Prince Harry, continues to persist.
This strained relationship, coupled with physical and emotional distance, has resulted in the monarch spending very little time with his two youngest grandchildren, Prince Archie, aged five, and Princess Lilibet, aged three. He has reportedly only seen Archie in person a few times and Lilibet just once shortly after her birth.
However, recent reports suggest that King Charles has expressed a desire to build a closer relationship with Harry and Meghan Markle’s children, especially following his sudden health concerns earlier this year. In February, the King was diagnosed with an undisclosed type of cancer during a procedure for an enlarged prostate and is currently undergoing treatment.
A source recently shared with Mirror US, “King Charles has expressed his wishes to see his grandchildren – and there’s no better time than the festive period to bring families together. There is no feeling like being a grandparent, and it is a role King Charles relishes. It is his hope for his family to be reunited, and there’s no better way than spending quality time with his grandchildren at Christmas. It would be truly special.”
The source continued, “There’s nothing King Charles wants more than to see his family united, and for his sons to put the past behind them and move forward. These are his twilight years, and he wants to enjoy them with his grandchildren making special memories.”
King Charles didn’t always have a distant bond with his grandchildren, especially Archie. When Archie was born in May 2019, the King expressed that he “couldn’t be more delighted.” During Archie’s christening, the King’s former Clarence House Instagram account featured a heartwarming image of Charles proudly gazing at the newborn.
Nevertheless, after Harry and Meghan decided to step down as working royals and relocate to the United States in early 2020, Charles has had limited interaction with his grandson. Their last recorded meeting occurred in 2022 when Archie accompanied his parents to the UK for the late Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations.
During the Coronation last year, which coincided with Archie’s fourth birthday, Archie remained in California with his mother, Meghan. Despite this, Archie seemed to remain in Charles’ thoughts. At a post-Coronation lunch, a well-placed source revealed that the monarch thanked everyone for their efforts and reportedly raised a glass to his three elder grandchildren: Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis.
He expressed his desire to remember “those that weren’t there” and extended heartfelt birthday wishes to Archie, “wherever he was.” A source described the moment to Daily Mail as “apparently a very sweet moment.” Regarding Lilibet, it seems they’ve only met once—when she traveled to the UK with her parents and brother Archie in 2022.
During that visit, Lilibet was nearing her first birthday, marking her first trip to the UK since being born in California. Reflecting on this meeting, a source shared: “The prince [King Charles], of course, hasn’t seen his grandson Archie for a bit of time and so it was very, very, very special to have some time with him. He hadn’t met Lili, his granddaughter, and so to meet her was very emotional, a very, very wonderful thing.”
Charles did not attend Lilibet’s christening last March, which was held at Harry and Meghan’s home in California. However, it was later revealed that both Lilibet and Archie would officially be known as Princess and Prince, titles they now hold as grandchildren of the King.
Royal author Ingrid Seward commented: “Family has always been important to the King. He remembers his own somewhat fragmented childhood as his parents were always busy doing their duty. It is a great sadness to him he doesn’t see more of Archie and Lilibet.”
She added: “That is why he will never break ties with Harry. He does not want a FaceTime relationship with his son’s children. He wants to know them and be involved with their lives while they are still young enough to be able to learn from his wisdom. His cancer has made it all the more poignant to him as he knows that he won’t be around forever.”
