Prince Harry is said to be ‘extending the olive branch to King Charles and Prince William’ by inviting them to the Invictus games in hopes to reconcile with his family…
The Duke of Sussex is said to be ‘extending the olive branch’ to King Charles and Prince William (Image: Anadolu via Getty Images)
Prince Harry is reportedly preparing to extend an invitation to his family for the 2027 Invictus Games in what is seen as a meaningful gesture towards reconciliation after years of strained tension.
The Duke of Sussex is believed to be aiming to repair his relationship with his father, King Charles and his brother Prince William, following the controversy surrounding his 2023 memoir Spare, which further strained his ties with the royal family.
Former invites to the games are expected to be sent later this month.
According to The Mail on Sunday, Harry is hoping that by giving the royal family plenty of notice – as senior royals often plan their schedules up to three years in advance – they will be able to attend the event.
“Harry has agreed that Invictus should extend an invitation to his family. Invictus hopes the Royal Family will come along to support the wounded veterans taking part,” a source stated to the Mail, continuing: “Harry is hopeful his father will set aside their differences to attend the Invictus Games and support veterans.”
“The Royals have always been hugely supportive of Invictus and proud of what Harry has achieved in that arena. This is one olive branch from him which might be reciprocated.”
If King Charles and Prince William accept the invite, it would mark the first time Prince Harry has been pictured with the royal family since the funeral of his grandmother, late Queen Elizabeth II.
Harry is hopeful his father will set aside their differences and attend (Image: Getty Images)
Although not everyone is convinced that the father and son duo will accept the strained Prince’s invite, with royal expert Katie Nicholl stating: “The King absolutely wants a relationship with his youngest son and with his grandchildren.”
“He has an incredible capacity for forgiveness and he wants to be magnanimous in all of this and therefore there’s certainly a possibility that the King might consider attending Invictus,” she continued.
Ingrid Seward added: “The King might attend to show support for the Armed Forces and congratulate Harry on the most significant success in his life.”
“The only reason the King is wary of associating with his son is that he no longer trusts him not to repeat their private conversations as he has done in the past. This goes for all the working members of the family,” she expressed.
The brothers relationship has been strained for quite some time (Image: Chris Jackson/Getty Images)
The 2027 Invictus Games are set to be held at Birmingham’s NEC from 12 to 17 July, overlapping with Queen Camilla’s 80th birthday celebrations.
Despite the overlap, the royal family has traditionally shown support for the event, which Prince Harry established in 2014 to honour wounded, injured and ill servicemen and women.
However, it’s still unclear whether Harry’s wife Meghan and their children Archie and Lilibet will make the trip to the UK, for the games.
Harry previously stated that a family visit would be challenging following his loss in a legal battle in May over his entitlement to police protection while in Britain.
Last month, Harry acknowledged that his relationship with his father, King Charles, had broken down due to the ongoing security dispute, telling the BBC: “He won’t speak to me because of this security stuff… I don’t know how much longer my father has.”
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Looking at the broader family tensions, he added: “Of course, some members of my family will never forgive me for writing a book… for lots of things. But you know, I would love reconciliation with my family. I’ve always… there’s no point in continuing to fight anymore. Life is precious.”