The new monarchy and government of the United Kingdom are contemplating whether or not to invite Prince Harry to the upcoming coronation of King Charles III. The current Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Rishi Sunak, shall advise the king on this matter.
Charles III Takes the Throne
The coronation of Charles III and his wife, Camilla, as King and Queen of the United Kingdom and the other Commonwealth realms is scheduled to take place on Saturday, 6 May 2024, at Westminster Abbey. The date of the coronation was announced in October 2022.
Charles III was declared king on 8 September, 2022, immediately upon the death of his mother, Elizabeth II.
He was then proclaimed king by the Accession Council of the United Kingdom on 10 September, 2022. This was followed by the proclamations in other Commonwealth realms.
His wife, Camilla, inevitably became the Queen Consort. She will be crowned alongside Charles III.
Announcement of The Coronation
In an October 2022 statement, the Buckingham Palace announced the date and location of the coronation, as well as the part of the Archbishop of Canterbury in the coronation.
“The coronation will reflect the monarch’s role today and look towards the future, while being rooted in longstanding traditions and pageantry,” the official statement had concluded. This has led people to speculate whether the ceremony would be conducted differently than the last time it was conducted 70 years ago.
Prince Harry’s Possible Exclusion
The Duke of Sussex, Prince Harry, had left the royal family in 2020, mostly citing unfair treatment towards his wife, Meghan Markle. Everyone seems to be questioning whether or not Prince Harry will be invited to the coronation ceremony after the recent release of Prince Harry’s memoir titled Spare; ghost-written by J. R. Moehringer.
It is said that the book provides an insider look into the royal family of the United Kingdom and is projected to include a lot of details that could potentially harm the public image of the royal family.
As a result, Charles III has been advised to allow Prime Minister Rishi Sunak to decide on whether Prince Harry and his wife, Meghan Markle should be allowed to attend the coronation ceremony. This places great responsibility in the hands of Rishi Sunak as he must advise the king based on what is best for the royal family and their public image.
“The Coronation is a State event and funded by the State. So, in the same way, that Winston Churchill advised the Duke of Windsor to stay away [from Elizabeth II’s Coronation],” an insider told Daily Mail, in reference to the barring of the Duke of Windsor from coming to the coronation of Elizabeth II in 1953, upon the advice of the then Prime Minister, Sir Winston Churchill.
“The decision of whether to invite Harry, who has no official Royal role and no state function at the ceremony, will be down to the Government rather than just his father.”
The Prime Minister has always advised the monarchs of the United Kingdom. It will be interesting to see whether or not the Duke and Duchess of Sussex will make it to the guest list for the coronation.
