Prince Harry is no longer on speaking terms with his brother (Image: Getty Images)
Prince Harry spoke candidly about his experience becoming a father for the first time, revealing the “struggle” he endured.
In 2019, the Duke of Sussex and his wife Meghan Markle welcomed their first child, Prince Archie. Although Harry has always seemed to be a naturally paternal person, he confessed that he experienced a sense of “struggle” following Archie’s arrival.
During a Movember event in Melbourne, Australia, last month, Harry remarked, “The role (fatherhood) gives you purpose. Those days, weeks, after birth are a real struggle.” The Duke of Sussex traveled to Australia with his wife.
Harry continued, “If I was stressed, the moment I held Archie… he would notice it quicker than I could.”
At the time of Archie’s birth, Harry remained a working royal and was still on speaking terms with his older brother Prince William, though it is understood the brothers weren’t as close as they used to be during that period.
Prince Archie was born in 2019 (Image: Getty)
Former royal editor Duncan Larcombe has suggested that had Harry and William maintained their closeness at the time, and in subsequent years, Harry might have felt “less isolated” during his transition to fatherhood.
Speaking to New magazine, the expert said, “Whenever I spoke to William about Harry back in the day, he was very, very protective of him, so I’m sure there will have been times in recent years when Harry missed the relationship with his brother.
“Their royal statuses aside, he will have missed having that person he turned to for support and advice, and maybe felt less isolated, especially when it came to becoming a father himself and struggling with elements of that experience.”
Larcombe added, “William had young kids already when Archie was born and he experienced the same childhood as Harry, so he would have been the perfect person for him to talk to, but sadly that’s not how it’s played out.”
Following Prince Harry’s departure from his royal duties in 2020, his bond with Prince William has been strained.
The brothers are understood to have maintained little to no communication for an extended period, reportedly stemming from Harry’s memoir Spare and the Duke of Sussex’s public critiques of the royal family.
The last time the siblings communicated remains unclear. Royal fans do hope the brothers can work out their differences, however, as Harry has been slowly mending his relationship with his father King Charles in recent years.
Harry has also expressed his desire to reunite with the rest of the royal family.