King Charles’s feelings about Prince Harry’s plans to change family name laid bare
King Charles received shocking news from his estranged son, Prince Harry, as he was about to take a drastic step which would have ended all ties to the royal family.
The Duke of Sussex had reached out to his uncle Charles Spencer as he “actively explored ways” to ditch the name ‘Mountbatten-Windsor’ and assume ‘Spencer’ instead, DailyMail's Richard Eden reported. However, Diana’s younger brother strictly advised against it.
While there has been silence from the Buckingham Palace about the latest discovery, it was revealed that the King was “deeply hurt” by the notion, per royal expert Richard Fitzwilliams.
Quoting Shakespeare’s infamous dialogue in Romeo and Juliet ‘What’s in a name?’, the expert stressed that the “someone’s family name is a pivotal and public link to the other family members”.
“Prince Harry was reportedly discussing the possibility of changing his name to Spencer with his uncle, the Earl, who advised against it,” Fitzwilliams told Express.co.uk.
“This news will be deeply hurtful to King Charles, especially as it would have been a very public renunciation of the Royal Family only a relatively short time after he (Charles) had become king.”
He explained while Harry’s uncle reasoned that “legal hurdles were insurmountable” the move would also have been a “clear gesture of enmity”.
“The King will be appalled that his youngest son has considered such a drastic step and this will only widen the royal rift,” he said.
The monarch is said cherish the Mountbatten-Windsor name just like his late father, Prince Philip. And while Harry still retains his HRH titles but is banned to use them after stepping down from their senior royal position, the latest move would have caused irreparable damage forever.
Charles reportedly still holds a soft corner for his son but he is frustrated by his constant antics and finds it hard to trust him. It only remains to be seen if the father-son would ever recover from this setback in their growing royal rift.
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