Prince William and Prince Harry’s feud is now being reassessed, with one photo being cited as the moment tensions started to become clear between King Charles’s sons.
The Daily Mail’s royal expert, Richard Eden, claims cracks were starting to show in the relationship between William and Princess Kate, and Harry and his wife Meghan Markle from as early as November 2018, two years before Megxit was announced – with the Sussexes quitting their Senior Royal duties for good before moving to the US.
In a photo taken following a service marking the centenary of WW1 armistice at Westminster Abbey that year, Eden highlighted the seemingly “tense” facial expressions of William and Kate.
Spotting the couple’s clenched jaws in the picture, Eden associates their appearance with a “lack of warmth” towards the Duke and Duchess of Sussex.
He explained on the publication’s Reading The Royals YouTube series: “This photograph is of them leaving Westminster Abbey after a service to mark Armistice Day, and at the time, we might have thought their seriousness was because of the nature of the event – that they would always look very sombre.
Harry and William looking sombre at the service while their wives smile ( Image: Getty Images)
“But, actually, there was a lot going on behind-the-scenes. There was a reminder at this event of the order of things for Harry and Meghan, because they were seated on the second row behind William and Catherine, who were on the front row with Queen Elizabeth, and with Charles and Camilla.”
The Royal expert added: “I haven’t noticed this before, but look at their jaws in this photograph, my goodness, they look tense.
“It’s far from a portrait of a relaxed family together, and this lack of warmth between them came after reports began to emerge that the two courts of William and Catherine, and Harry and Meghan would be splitting.”
Eden recalled that this was a major story at the time, because everything the Royal couples had done previously were group endeavours, including their Royal Foundation and their offices.
He continued: “These reports suggested that all wasn’t well, and it would later be confirmed that they were going to separate, and it was the first sign of the formal separation between the two households.”
