King Charles ‘devastated’ over Prince Harry and Meghan Markle fallout

King Charles is ‘absolutely devastated’ by ‘what has happened’ with Prince Harry and is ‘hopeful’ of a reconciliation, a royal expert has claimed.

Katie Nicholl, author of The New Royals: Queen Elizabeth’s Legacy and the Future of the Crown, told Fox News Digital that the King is heartbroken over the change in his relationship with the Duke of Sussex, 38, since his son married Meghan Markle in 2018.  

Vanity Fair’s royal editor Miss Nicholl said: ‘He is hopeful that there will be a reconciliation. I think we saw that in the very public olive branches that were extended to Harry and Meghan.’

King Charles, pictured with his son in 2018, is ‘absolutely devastated’ by ‘what has happened’ with Prince Harry and is ‘hopeful’ of a reconciliation, royal expert Katie Nicholl has claimed

The King walks side-by-side with his son Harry as they arrive at St George’s Chapel in Windsor Castle for the late Queen’s funeral last month

Miss Nicholl explained: ‘Charles absolutely has been devastated by what has happened.

‘If you think back just a couple of years around the time of the wedding, the relationship between Harry and his father was, I think, probably better than it ever had been.’

Among the many challenges facing the King in his reign, including modernising Britain’s ancient monarchy, will be how to deal with Harry and Meghan.

The couple plunged The Firm into crisis after quitting public duties for a life free from royal obligations in California – from where they have made a string of damaging allegations against the institution.

In his first address to the nation as monarch last month, the King appeared to extend an ‘olive branch’ to the couple. However, others believe it was no more than a PR bid for unity in the hours after the Queen’s death. 

As King Charles shook hands with PM Liz Truss at their weekly meeting on Wednesday, viewers spotted he had keepsakes on display, including pictures from Harry and Meghan’s wedding

The photo on display appears to be one of the family from Harry and Meghan’s 2018 wedding

In the run-up to the funeral, Harry was apparently banned from wearing military uniform on the day, and he and Meghan were reportedly uninvited from a reception at Buckingham Palace hosted by the King for VIPs including foreign royalty, prime ministers and presidents.

However hopes of a thaw in the ‘cold war’ between The Firm and the Sussexes emerged weeks ago, after royal insiders revealed that King Charles saw ‘tremendous flickers of hope’ when he spoke to Harry and Meghan at the Queen’s funeral – and even believes he might even be able to salvage the relationship with the Duke and Duchess of Sussex.

The King’s conversations with his son and daughter-in-law at the ceremonies for the late monarch at Westminster Abbey and Windsor Castle left him feeling hopeful that he could mend relations with the Sussexes after their acrimonious departure from the Royal Family.

An insider told The Daily Telegraph: ‘It remains the case that the King loves both of his children.

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The picture seen at Buckingham Palace appears to be this, which is one of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s wedding photographs. Standing from back left: Camilla, Charles, Harry and Meghan, Meghan’s mother Doria Ragland and William. Front, seated: The late Duke of Edinburgh, Queen Elizabeth II and Kate in the drawing room at Windsor Castle in 2018

‘Over the last 16 days or so, there were tremendous flickers of hope. In terms of the future, there is hope of a cause for unity.’

And this week it was reported that despite the tension, King Charles may still hold Harry and his wife in high esteem as eagle-eyed viewers spotted a photo of the pair at Buckingham Palace as he greeted Liz Truss. 

A short clip showed the monarch greeting the Prime Minister at his royal residence in London this week for the first of their regular weekly audiences.

And a photograph could be seen positioned on a table in a room there, showing the Duke and Duchess of Sussex at Windsor Castle following their wedding in May 2018.

The picture shows the couple surrounded by their bridal party along with Queen Elizabeth II, Prince Philip, Charles, Camilla and Meghan’s mother Doria Ragland.

William and Kate were also in the photograph with Princess Charlotte and Prince George. Prince Louis was not there, having been born just four weeks earlier.