Prince William is expressing his “sadness” that the British royal family is no longer a “team” days before the senior members of the clan are set to meet over his brother Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s sudden announcement about scaling back their roles.
The Duke of Cambridge has indicated his frustration that he and Prince Harry are now “separate entities,” according to the Sunday Times.
“I’ve put my arm around my brother all our lives and I can’t do that any more; we’re separate entities,” the outlet reported that Prince William, 37, told a friend. “I’m sad about that. All we can do, and all I can do, is try and support them and hope that the time comes when we’re all singing from the same page. I want everyone to play on the team.”
The remarks come less than a week after the Duke and Duchess of Sussex announced their intentions to “step back as ‘senior’ members of the Royal Family and work to become financially independent.” They now plan to split their time between the United Kingdom and North America.
However, the couple, who recently welcomed their first son Archie, reportedly did not notify Queen Elizabeth II, 93, of their plans before announcing them to the world, leaving the rest of the royal family shocked by the news. As a result, the queen has summoned the pair, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, and Prince Charles to meet on Monday to discuss the transition options.
Among the items to hash out are how much “official” work Prince Harry, 35, and Meghan Markle, 38, will do on behalf of the government and royal family, whether or not they will keep their HRH titles and how they will be styled, and how much money they will receive from the queen once their sovereign grant public funding is cut.
Angered by their decision, a new poll found that a majority of Britons want to see the duke and duchess stripped of their royal titles, and 54% of the British public think Prince Harry should “give up right” to be the sixth in line to the throne.
