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Did King Charles ask his daughter-in-law, Meghan Markle, to "stay away" from his mother, Queen Elizabeth, during her final days?
Reports obtained by Daily Mail suggest that Markle "was asked to stay away by then-Prince Charles to let Harry visit his grandmother alone, with the understanding that the same was also asked of Kate."
While the Duke and Duchess of Sussex had planned to travel to Scotland together to visit Queen Elizabeth during her final days, Markle, who was allegedly already in the UK, did not join Harry due to a "change of plans."
A 2024 biography proposed that King Charles did not ask his eldest son Prince William's wife, Kate Middleton, to stay away from Balmoral Castle, where the Queen passed away in September 2022, and that she chose to stay behind to see her children, Prince George, 11, Princess Charlotte, 9, and Prince Louis, 6, off on their first day at a new school.
Prince Harry noted a call he received from his father the month his grandmother passed away, asking him to leave his wife at home, in his 2023 memoir, Spare, quoted by Daily Mail.
"Then came another call from Pa. He said I was welcome at Balmoral, but he didn't want…her. He started to lay out his reason, which was nonsensical and disrespectful, and I wasn't having it," he responded, "Don't ever speak about my wife that way." It remains unclear whether the King wanted to avoid confrontation, or if he just wanted William and Harry to visit their grandmother alone before her passing.
For more on King Charles's relationship with his youngest son, read The 'Real Reason' Prince Harry And King Charles Don't Keep In Touch Anymore.