King Charles turned against royal aide who was capable of dealing with Harry

Royal author Andrew Lownie said the intensity of the backlash experienced by King Charles and his family could have been lessened had Lord Geidt remained in his post, referring to the Queen's Private Secretary of 10 years who was removed from his position in Buckingham Palace in 2017.

He was removed from his position after a row over expenditure erupted.

According to UK's Daily Express, Charles and Andrew had a role in the removal of Lord Geidt who had introduced the idea of slimmed down monarchy.

Speaking to Express.co.uk, Lownie said the monarchy would have reacted in the same way were Harry's book released while Queen Elizabeth was alive.

But were Lord Geidt still employed by Buckingham Palace, Mr Lownie "didn't think the problem would have escalated" to such significant levels of public interest.

He accused Charles and Andrew of removing Lord Geidt in a "palace coup".

The royal family has not responded to the series of allegations levelled by Prince Harry in his book.