Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have reportedly decided that the Duchess of Sussex and their children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet, will not travel to London with Harry next week.
The decision is said to have disappointed King Charles, who had been hoping for another chance to see his grandchildren.
According to The Telegraph, the move comes after Harry’s request for police protection was denied. Following nearly 10 days of uncertainty, the Duke has now decided that it would not be “safe to bring” his family to London.
Harry is expected to fly to the UK alone on Monday. It is still unclear whether he will accept King Charles’ reported invitation to stay at a royal residence during the visit.
The report added that Harry is understood to be speaking directly with his father, with any possible plans for a meeting being arranged privately between the two.
The last-minute decision is likely to come as a blow to Charles, as it means the monarch will once again miss the opportunity to spend time with Archie and Lilibet.
The development follows earlier claims that Harry and Meghan had reached an understanding with King Charles after the monarch extended an olive branch.
Royal commentator Chloe Walker claimed the reported agreement included certain conditions for any private royal meetings.
“These rules that they have agreed to, they’re quite interesting,” Walker said. “One of the rules is that they are not to film any of the private meetings that they have with any of the Royal Family.”
She added that another condition was that the couple would not give interviews afterward.
“There will be no Oprah interviews or any revelations to come from the private meetings,” Walker said.
The latest decision suggests that while Harry may still return to the UK for his scheduled engagements, any wider family reunion involving Meghan, Archie and Lilibet is now unlikely to happen during this trip.
