Prince Harry and Meghan are making a return to the United Kingdom along with their children, as confirmed by Buckingham Palace on Wednesday. The initial reports came from The Telegraph and The Sun. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, together with their children Prince Archie, 7, and Princess Lilibet, 5, will be relocating but will live as private individuals, according to the Palace. While there is no official date for their return, media sources suggest it will be in time for the children to commence school in September.
Having stepped back from their full-time royal duties in March 2020, Harry and Meghan departed from the U.K. and later settled in California after a brief stay in Canada. Their decision to move back to the UK follows a period of strained relations with the Royal Family due to their public criticisms of the monarchy. Harry, in an interview on The Late, Late Show with James Corden in February 2021, expressed the challenges faced and the need to prioritize his family’s well-being.
Despite his frustrations with the British government over security arrangements, Harry emphasized that he never intended to abandon his responsibilities. Additionally, Harry was involved in a privacy lawsuit against the publisher of The Daily Mail in July, where he testified about the distress caused to Meghan. Following the lawsuit loss, Harry criticized the court’s ruling as unjust.
Relations with the King seemed to be improving last September when Harry and his father briefly reunited after nearly two years. The entire family visited Britain in July, allowing King Charles to meet his grandchildren for the first time since 2022. The Palace shared that King Charles supported the Sussex family’s decision to relocate and looked forward to spending more time with them.
In December, it was revealed that King Charles had been undergoing treatment for an undisclosed form of cancer but responded well to the interventions. Medical professionals were optimistic and decided to transition his treatment to a precautionary phase.
