Prince Harry followed Charles Spencer's pledge that was made at Diana's funeral

Prince Harry is set to celebrate his 40th birthday today with his wife Meghan Markle and their children in America.

According to insiders, the Duke of Sussex will celebrate the milestone with a big birthday bash that will not be attended by any members of the Royal Family, making his big day very different to what it would have been like years ago.

After leaving the Royal Firm in 2020, Harry has experienced rifts with his brother William and has become more estranged from the Royal Family.

However, it has been confirmed that Prince Harry still has strong relationships with his mother Princess Diana’s family, including with his uncle - and Princess Diana’s brother - Charles Spencer.

In a recent visit to the UK for a funeral, Harry stayed with his uncle at Althorp House, Diana’s childhood home. A source has also confirmed that Harry has been invited to spend Christmas with his uncle in the UK.

Although Harry’s relationship with his uncle has not always been well-documented, it is clear their bond remained strong after Princess Diana’s death in 1997 aged 36.

Harry’s actions since leaving the Royal Family also suggest that Charles Spencers’ pledge, which was made at Diana’s funeral, has been fulfilled.

At the service in 1997, a heartbroken Charles Spencer made it clear to people gathered to mourn Diana that he will do all he can to help her sons thrive and not just abide to royal duty.

In his speech, Charles referred to Diana as being the “most hunted person of the modern age” after she suffered years of press intrusion.

He said to the funeral congregation in 1997: “She would want us today to pledge ourselves to protecting her beloved boys William and Harry from a similar fate and I do this here Diana on your behalf. We will not allow them to suffer the anguish that used regularly to drive you to tearful despair.

"And beyond that, on behalf of your mother and sisters, I pledge that we, your blood family, will do all we can to continue the imaginative way in which you were steering these two exceptional young men so that their souls are not simply immersed by duty and tradition but can sing openly as you planned.

"We fully respect the heritage into which they have both been born and will always respect and encourage them in their royal role but we, like you, recognise the need for them to experience as many different aspects of life as possible to arm them spiritually and emotionally for the years ahead. I know you would have expected nothing less from us.”

These words ring true for Harry, who claimed he left the Royal Firm in 2020 after his wife suffered a press intrusion similar to that of his mother.

By moving to America, the duke and his subsequent actions - including bombshell interviewes - suggest he was able to “sing openly” as Charles said Harry’s mother would have wanted him to do.

In his memoir Spare and his docuseries Harry and Meghan, the duke also claimed on numerous occasions that reasons for leaving the UK and taking legal action against tabloid newspapers were in a bid to saving himself and his wife suffering a similar fate to his mother.

This was something his uncle Charles had pledged to protect him from on behalf of his mother.

In a 2019 statement confirming him and Meghan were going to take action against certain publications for publishing details of a private letter, Harry said: “Because my deepest fear is history repeating itself. I’ve seen what happens when someone I love is commoditised to the point that they are no longer treated or seen as a real person. I lost my mother and now I watch my wife falling victim to the same powerful forces.”

It has not been confirmed whether the Royal Family will publicly wish the duke a happy birthday this weekend, however Charles Spencer is likely to be in touch with his nephew on the big day.