Harry faced serious challenges despite William’s support at Eton

The tragic death of Princess Diana strengthened the bond between Prince William and Prince Harry, who leaned on each other following their mother's passing. 

As the older brother, William looked out for Harry, especially when he joined him at Eton a year later. William had started at the prestigious all-boys school in 1995, with Harry beginning in September 1998. 

William quickly took Harry under his wing, and as noted by royal historian Robert Lacey in his 2020 book Battle of Brothers, their shared experience of grief forged a strong connection. 

They spent two closely intertwined years at Eton, with William’s established circle of trusted friends welcoming Harry into their fold.

But there were some issues for Harry, as Lacey notes: "Quite a few of his expanding social circle were a full two years older than him — making it likely that the 14-year-old would be introduced to temptations ahead of his years. And Harry's bright self-confidence was misleading — he was not as grown-up as he appeared."

Indeed, by his own admission, during his time at Eton, Harry started to smoke marijuana - something he wrote about in his memoir Spare. 

"I don't remember how we got the stuff. One of my mates, I expect," he said. "Or maybe several. Whenever we found ourselves in possession, we'd commandeer a tiny upstairs bathroom, wherein we'd implement a surprisingly thoughtful, orderly assembly line. Smoker straddled the loo beside the window, second boy leaned against the basin, third and fourth boys sat in the empty bath, legs dangling over, waiting their turns.

He also revealed he later turned to cocaine to deal with mental and emotional anguish still impacting him from the death of his mother.