Prince Harry was 'reluctant' to leave Royal Family bombshell book claims
The Duke of Sussex reportedly hoped for a different outcome.
An explosive new royal book has claimed that Prince Harry was "reluctant" to leave the Royal Family ahead of his and Meghan Markle's shock departure in 2020. At the time that the pair issued the bombshell statement, they announced their wish for a 'half in and half out' deal that would have seen them split their time between the UK and the US.
However, when they sat down to discuss their future plans, it was immediately clear that this was not on the table. Writing about 'Megxit' in his new book, Queen Elizabeth II, author Hugo Vickers wrote that Harry was “keen to discuss a way forward with the Queen. He wanted a half-in, half-out arrangement, whereby he would be self-financing but could still work for the Royal Family. In the new year of 2020, the three Private Secretaries, Sir Edward Young, Sir Clive Alderton and Simon Case, went into summit mode on the Sandringham estate and drafted their proposal."
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The author continues: “Prince Harry went to Sandringham for the meeting and was told it was either all in or all out. He returned to Canada — reluctantly out.”
The couple soon moved to Montecito, California, where they continue to raise their two children, Prince Archie, six, and Princess Lilibet, four.
Before he left for Canada, Harry met with his late grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II, his father, King Charles, and his brother, Prince William, at Sandringham House in Norfolk. The meeting was later dubbed 'the Sandringham Summit' and was called to discuss the Sussexes desire to step back as senior royals, become financially independent, and find a new, part-time role within the monarchy.
In a statement released immediately after the ‘crisis’ meeting at Sandringham, the Queen issued the following announcement in a rare personal statement: "Today my family had very constructive discussions on the future of my grandson and his family.
"My family and I are entirely supportive of Harry and Meghan’s desire to create a new life as a young family. Although we would have preferred them to remain full-time working members of the Royal Family, we respect and understand their wish to live a more independent life as a family while remaining a valued part of my family. Harry and Meghan have made clear that they do not want to be reliant on public funds in their new lives.
"It has therefore been agreed that there will be a period of transition in which the Sussexes will spend time in Canada and the UK. These are complex matters for my family to resolve, and there is some more work to be done, but I have asked for final decisions to be reached in the coming days."
