Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex,[fn 2] KCVO (Henry Charles Albert David; born 15 September 1984)[2] is a member of the British royal family. He is the younger son of King Charles III and Diana, Princess of Wales. He is fifth in the line of succession to the British throne.
Harry was educated at Wetherby School, Ludgrove School, and Eton College. He spent parts of his gap year in Australia and Lesotho, then underwent officer training at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst. He was commissioned as a cornet into the Blues and Royals, serving temporarily with his brother William and completed training as a troop leader. In 2007–2008, he served for over ten weeks in Helmand Province, Afghanistan. He returned to Afghanistan for a 20-week deployment in 2012–2013 with the Army Air Corps. In June 2015, he resigned from the army.
Harry launched the Invictus Games in 2014 and remains the patron of its foundation. He gives patronage to several other organisations, including the HALO Trust and Walking With The Wounded.[3] To encourage people to open up about their mental health issues, Harry, alongside his brother and his sister-in-law Catherine, initiated the mental health awareness campaign "Heads Together" in April 2016.[4]
In 2018, Harry was made Duke of Sussex prior to his wedding to American actress Meghan Markle. They have two children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet. In January 2020, the couple stepped down as working royals and moved to the Duchess's native Southern California. In October 2020, they launched Archewell Inc., an American public organisation that focuses on non-profit activities and creative media ventures. Together with his wife, Harry sat down for a much-publicised interview with Oprah Winfrey in March 2021, in which he said he was estranged from the royal family. With Winfrey he produced the mental health documentary series The Me You Can't See. He and his wife filmed the documentary series Harry & Meghan, released in December 2022. Harry's memoir Spare was published by Penguin Random House in 2023.
BornPrince Henry of Wales
15 September 1984 (age 38)
St Mary's Hospital, London, England, United Kingdom
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's objective is to find a sense of equilibrium in their lives, prioritising their mental well-being, all while maintaining a close yet independent stance from the spotlight of the Royal circle.
FILE PHOTO: Britain's Prince Harry and Meghan, Duke and Duchess of Sussex, wave as they visit One World Trade Center in Manhattan, New York City, U.S., September 23, 2021. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly/File Photo(REUTERS/Andrew Kelly/File Photo)Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are considering the possibility of renting an apartment in Kensington Palace in an effort to mend ties with the Royal Family, OK! Magazine reported citing a source. The insider has revealed to the publication that, while Prince Harry is open to reconnecting with his family, he is also cautious about becoming confined within the palace's walls.The couple aims to strike a balance in their lives and prioritise their mental well-being while staying close yet independent from the high-profile Royal circle. They have offered to rent an apartment at Kensington Palace and furnish it themselves as a gesture to demonstrate their seriousness about returning, the publication reported. LiveMint could not independently verify the report.
There are speculations that Meghan Markle may not be enthusiastic about the prospect of living in a small apartment at Kensington Palace. At the same time, the publication quoted Royal expert Tom Bower as saying that Prince Harry may face difficulties in returning to the UK due to the family drama that unfolded in the past.
Bower expressed concerns about the potential damage Prince Harry's return could cause to the Royal Family, given the controversies surrounding his departure and subsequent actions.
"I think Meghan would've been horrified by Harry's suggestion," OK! quoted Bower as saying. "She's not close to William and Kate ... I would imagine the last thing she'd want to do is return to England to live in a small, poky flat in Kensington Palace."
Early life
Prince Harry was born in the Lindo Wing of St Mary's Hospital in Paddington, London, on 15 September 1984 as the second child of Charles, Prince of Wales (later King Charles III), and his first wife, Diana, Princess of Wales, during the reign of his grandmother Queen Elizabeth II.[5][6][fn 3] He was christened Henry Charles Albert David on 21 December 1984 at St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle, by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Robert Runcie.[fn 4] Growing up, he was referred to as "Harry" by family, friends, and the public, and was nicknamed "Harold" by his brother.[10] Harry and his elder brother, William, were raised at Kensington Palace in London, and Highgrove House in Gloucestershire.[11][12] Diana wanted him and his brother to have a broader range of experiences and a better understanding of ordinary life than previous royal children. She took them to venues that ranged from Walt Disney World and McDonald's to AIDS clinics and homeless shelters.[13] He began accompanying his parents on official visits at an early age; his first overseas tour was with his parents to Italy in 1985.[14] He also travelled with his family to Canada in 1991 and 1998.[15][16]
Harry's parents divorced in 1996. His mother died in a car crash in Paris the following year. Harry and William were staying with their father at Balmoral at the time, and the Prince of Wales told his sons about their mother's death.[17] At his mother's funeral, Harry, then aged 12, accompanied his father, brother, paternal grandfather Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, and maternal uncle Charles Spencer, 9th Earl Spencer, in walking behind the funeral cortège from Kensington Palace to Westminster Abbey.[18] Harry and his brother William inherited the "bulk" of the £12.9 million left by their mother on their respective 30th birthdays, a figure that had grown since her 1997 death to £10 million each in 2014.[19][20] In 2014, Harry and William inherited their mother's wedding dress along with many of her other personal possessions, including dresses, diamond tiaras, jewels, letters, and paintings. The brothers also received the original lyrics and score of "Candle in the Wind", by Bernie Taupin and Elton John, as performed by John at Diana's funeral.[20] In 2002, The Times reported that Harry would also share with his brother a disbursement of £4.9 million from trust funds established by their great-grandmother, Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother, on their respective 21st birthdays and would share a disbursement of £8 million upon their respective 40th birthdays.[21] It was reported that Harry would inherit the bulk of the money left by the Queen Mother for the two brothers, as William is set to ascend to the throne, which will bring him additional financial benefits.[22]
Education
Like his father and brother, Harry was educated at private schools. He started at London's Jane Mynors' nursery school and the pre-preparatory Wetherby School.[23] Following this, he attended Ludgrove School in Berkshire. After passing entrance exams, he was admitted to Eton College. The decision to place Harry at Eton went against the past practice of the Mountbatten-Windsors to send children to Gordonstoun, which Harry's grandfather, father, two uncles, and two cousins had attended. It did, however, see Harry follow in his older brother's footsteps and the Spencer family's, as both Diana's father and brother attended Eton.[13] As was the case with his brother, the royal family and the tabloid press agreed Harry would be allowed to study free from intrusion in exchange for occasional photograph opportunities in what became known as the "pressure cooker agreement".[24]
In June 2003, Harry completed his education at Eton with two A-Levels,[25] achieving a grade B in art and D in geography, having decided to drop history of art after AS level.[26] He has been described as "a top tier athlete", having played competitive polo and rugby union.[27] One of his former teachers, Sarah Forsyth, has asserted that he was a "weak student" and that staff at Eton conspired to help him cheat on examinations.[28][29] Both Eton and Harry denied the claims.[28][30] While a tribunal made no ruling on the cheating claim, it "accepted the prince had received help in preparing his A-level 'expressive' project, which he needed to pass to secure his place at Sandhurst."[28][31] Harry also joined the Combined Cadet Force while studying at Eton and was made cadet officer in his final year, leading the corps' annual parade at the Eton tattoo.[32]
After school, Harry took a gap year, during which he spent time in Australia working as a jackaroo on a cattle station, and participating in the Young England vs Young Australia Polo Test match.[33][34] He also travelled to Lesotho, where he worked with orphaned children and produced the documentary film The Forgotten Kingdom: Prince Harry in Lesotho
Military career
Sandhurst; Blues and Royals; deployment to Afghanistan
Officer Cadet Wales (standing next to the horse) on parade at Sandhurst, 21 June 2005
Harry passed the Regular Commissions Board (RCB) in September 2004 and entered the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst on 8 May 2005, where he was known as Officer Cadet Wales, and joined Alamein Company.[37][38] His entry into the academy had to be delayed for 4 months as he recovered from an injury to his left knee.[39] In April 2006, Harry completed his officer training and was commissioned as a Cornet (second lieutenant) in the Blues and Royals, a regiment of the Household Cavalry in the British Army. On 13 April 2008, when he reached two years' seniority, Harry was promoted to lieutenant.[40]
In 2006, it was announced that Harry's unit was scheduled to be deployed in Iraq the following year. A public debate ensued as to whether he should serve there. In April 2006, the Ministry of Defence announced that Harry would be shielded from the front line if his unit was sent to war, with a spokeswoman stating that he was expected to "undertake the fullest range of deployments", but his role needed to be monitored as "his overt presence might attract additional attention" that would put him or those he commanded at risk.[41] Defence Secretary John Reid said that he should be allowed to serve on the front line of battle zones. Harry agreed saying, "If they said 'no, you can't go front line' then I wouldn't drag my sorry ass through Sandhurst and I wouldn't be where I am now."[42] Harry completed the Troop Leaders' Course in October 2006 and rejoined his regiment in Windsor, where he was put in charge of a troop of 11 soldiers and four Scimitar reconnaissance vehicles.[43] The Ministry of Defence and Clarence House made a joint announcement on 22 February 2007 that Harry would be deployed with his regiment to Iraq, as part of the 1st Mechanised Brigade of the 3rd Mechanised Division – a move supported by Harry, who had stated that he would leave the army if he was told to remain in safety while his regiment went to war.[44]
The head of the British army at the time, General Sir Richard Dannatt, said on 30 April 2007 that he had personally decided that Harry would serve with his unit in Iraq as a troop commander,[45][46] and Harry was scheduled for deployment in May or June 2007 to patrol the Maysan Governorate.[47] By 16 May, however, Dannatt announced that Harry would not serve in Iraq;[48] concerns included Harry being a high-value target (as several threats by various groups had already been made against him) and the dangers the soldiers around him would face should any attempt be made on his life or if he were captured. Clarence House made public Harry's disappointment with the decision, though he said he would abide by it.[49]
In the summer of 2007, Harry was trained as a joint terminal attack controller at RAF Leeming.[50] In early June 2007, it was reported that Harry had arrived in Canada to train alongside soldiers of the Canadian Forces and British Army, at CFB Suffield near Medicine Hat, Alberta. It was said that this was in preparation for a tour of duty in Afghanistan, where Canadian and British forces were participating in the NATO-led Afghan War.[51] This was confirmed in February of the following year when the British Ministry of Defence revealed that Harry had been secretly deployed as a joint terminal attack controller to Helmand Province in Afghanistan for the previous ten weeks.[52][53] The revelation came after the media – notably, German newspaper Bild and Australian magazine New Idea[54][55] – breached the blackout placed over the information by the Canadian and British authorities.[56] He was immediately pulled out due to the fear that the media coverage would put his security and the security of fellow soldiers at risk.[57][58] It was later reported that Harry helped Gurkha troops repel an attack from Taliban insurgents,[59] and performed patrol duty in hostile areas while in Afghanistan.[60][61][62]
Harry's tour made him the first member of the British royal family to serve in a war zone since his uncle Prince Andrew, who flew helicopters during the Falklands War. For his service, his aunt Princess Anne presented Harry with an Operational Service Medal for Afghanistan at the Combermere Barracks in May 2008.[63]
Marriage and fatherhood
Further information:
Wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
The wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle was held on Saturday 19 May 2018 in St George's Chapel at Windsor Castle in the United Kingdom. The groom is a member of the British royal family; the bride is American and previously worked as an actress, blogger,[1] charity ambassador,[2] and advocate.[3][note 1] On the morning of the wedding, Prince Harry's grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II, conferred upon him the titles of Duke of Sussex, Earl of Dumbarton and Baron Kilkeel. On her marriage, Markle gained the style Her Royal Highness and titles Duchess of Sussex, Countess of Dumbarton and Baroness Kilkeel. Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury, officiated at the wedding using the standard Anglican church service for Holy Matrimony published in Common Worship, a liturgical text of the Church of England.[4][5] The traditional ceremony was noted for the inclusion of African-American culture
Prince Harry is the second son of King Charles III (then the Prince of Wales) and Diana, Princess of Wales. He and Meghan Markle, an American actress best known for her role in the Canadian-American legal-drama television series Suits, began their relationship in mid-2016.[7] According to the couple, they first connected with each other via Instagram,[8] though they have also said that they were set up on a blind date by a mutual friend in July 2016.[7][9] The relationship was made public by the press on 31 October 2016,[10] and it was officially acknowledged on 8 November 2016, when a statement was released from the Prince's communications secretary addressing the "wave of abuse and harassment" directed toward Markle.On 27 November 2017, Clarence House announced that Harry would marry Markle in the spring of 2018.[12] They were engaged earlier in London after Harry asked Markle to marry him in Kensington Palace's north garden.[13] The Prince gave Markle a bespoke engagement ring made by Cleave and Company, the court jewellers and medallists to the Queen, consisting of a large central diamond from Botswana, with two smaller diamonds from his mother's jewellery collection.[14][note 2] At the same time, it was announced that they would live at Nottingham Cottage in the grounds of Kensington Palace following their marriage.[17]
Harry's grandparents Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip expressed their delight at the news, while congratulations came in from various political leaders, including the British prime minister, Theresa May, and the leader of the Opposition, Jeremy Corbyn. After the announcement, the couple gave an exclusive interview to Mishal Husain of BBC News.[17]
During the public announcement of the engagement at Kensington Palace's Sunken Gardens, Markle wore a bottle knee-length emerald green dress with bow detailing at the cinched waist by Italian label P.A.R.O.S.H and a white trench coat by Canadian brand Line the Label.[18][19] Hours after the announcement, the website of Line the Label crashed down due to the number of people who were trying to order the coat.[14][20]
Markle is the second American[note 3] and the first person of mixed race heritage to marry into the British royal family.[21] The engagement announcement prompted much comment about the possible social significance of Markle becoming a proudly mixed-race royal.[22][23][24][25][26]
Under the terms of the Succession to the Crown Act 2013, the first six persons in the line of succession require the Sovereign's consent in order to marry. Harry was fifth in line at the time of his engagement.[27] The Queen's consent was declared to the Privy Council of the United Kingdom on 14 March 2018.[28][29]
Although Markle attended a private Catholic school in her early years, she is not Roman Catholic.[30] On 6 March 2018, she was baptised and confirmed into the Church of England by the archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, at St. James's Palace.[31] Although Markle was divorced, the Anglican Church has permitted marriage to divorced persons with a living former spouse since 2002.[32][33] After the engagement, Markle began the years-long process of becoming a British citizen.[34] She retained her U.S. citizenship during the process,[35] which was expected to create tax complications if she were to acquire dual nationality.[36] The couple was invited to celebrate Christmas 2017 with the royal family at the Queen's Sandringham estate.[37] The official engagement photographs were taken by Alexi Lubomirski (a former assistant to Mario Testino) at Frogmore House, and were issued by Kensington Palace on 21 December 2017.[38] In two of the three photographs that were released to the public, Meghan is shown wearing a black tulle gown with gold embroidery by Ralph & Russo.[38]
To mark the wedding of Harry and Meghan, the Royal Mint produced an official UK £5 coin, showing the couple in profile.[39] In May, a set of commemorative postage stamps, featuring the couple's official engagement photographs, was issued by Royal Mail.[40]
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