Prince Harry to attend King Charles’ coronation, but Meghan Markle will stay away

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have at last reached a decision on whether or not they’ll attend King Charles’ coronation.

Meghan Markle will remain home with her children as Prince Harry attends his father’s coronation in England. Picture: Toby Melville/Getty Images

Prince Harry has decided to attend the coronation of his father, King Charles III, but his wife Meghan Markle will remain in the United States with their children.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s long-awaited decision on whether or not to travel across the Atlantic for the historic event, to be held at Westminster Abbey on May 6, was revealed by Buckingham Palace on Wednesday afternoon, UK time.

“Buckingham Palace is pleased to confirm that the Duke of Sussex will attend the Coronation Service,” a palace spokesperson said.

“The Duchess of Sussex will remain in California with Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet.”

The coronation falls on Archie’s fourth birthday.

Harry and Meghan’s delay in making a decision had reportedly been causing problems for organisers, with seating plans yet to be finalised. The cut-off date for RSVPs was April 3.

Meghan has decided to remain with their children in the US. Picture: Michele Spatari/AFP

King Charles and his wife, the soon-to-be Queen Camilla, will arrive at Westminster Abbey via a procession in a horse-drawn carriage, with a group of about 15 working royals expected to trail behind them.

As Harry is no longer a working member of the family, that means he will not be part of the group. Neither will Prince Andrew.

This procession will follow a route about a quarter of the length travelled by Charles’ mother, Queen Elizabeth II, before her coronation in 1953.

Harry will also be absent from the Buckingham Palace balcony when his father, Camilla, Prince William, Princess Kate and their children appear, having returned to the palace after the coronation service, conducted by the Archbishop of Canterbury.

King Charles. Picture: Yui Mok/Getty Images

Westminster Abbey. Picture: Isabel Infantes/AFP

An awkward reunion

The coronation will mark Harry’s first time being seen, publicly, in the presence of his family since he released his explosive tell all memoir, Spare, in January.

The book contained a number of awkward claims and revelations about fellow royals, and painted a particularly unflattering picture of Camilla.

He was last in London in March, attending a court hearing in his privacy case against Associated Newspapers Ltd. During his testimony in that case, he accused his family of “withholding information” from him for “a long time” in an effort to prevent him from “opening a can of worms.”

“Following the death of my mother in 1997 when I was 12 years old and her treatment at the hands of the press, I have always had an uneasy relationship with the press,” Harry said.

“However, as a member of the Institution the policy was to ‘never complain, never explain.’

“There was no alternative; I was conditioned to accept it. For the most part, I accepted the interest in my performing my public functions.”

However, he said it became increasingly difficult after he started dating Meghan Markle, and he was “increasingly troubled by the approach of not taking action against the press in the wake of vicious persistent attacks on, harassment of and intrusive, sometimes racist articles concerning Meghan.

“The situation got worse”, he claimed, after Meghan fell pregnant and around the birth of their first child, Prince Archie, in May 2019.

Meghan and Harry. Picture: Mike Coppola/Getty Images

In his statement to the court, Harry also said that he only became aware in 2018 that he had a potential claim against News Group Newspapers over alleged phone hacking.

“The Institution was without a doubt withholding information from me for a long time about NGN’s phone hacking and that has only become clear in recent years as I have pursued my own claim with different legal advice and representation,” he said.

“It is not an exaggeration to say that the bubble burst in terms of what I knew in 2020 when I moved out of the United Kingdom.”

Harry is not believed to have met with Charles or William during that trip in March.

‘Complete chaos’ behind the scenes

Meanwhile, concerning new details about the latest plans for the coronation have painted a picture of “complete chaos” behind the scenes.

According to British newspaper The Mirror, with just over three weeks to go, organisers are now in a “race against time”, with major issues cropping up and wreaking havoc on the structure of the event.

While the ceremony has been stripped back from a more than three-hour event to one which is supposed to run for a significantly shorter 90 minutes, the one rehearshal to have taken place so far “overran significantly”. There are fears that viewers will switch off.

“It’s all very frantic, complete chaos to be frank,” an insider told the publication.

“There is a plan, which is supposed to be the blueprint of how the day should operate, but things are changing daily which is causing massive headaches.”

However, another royal source eased concerns somewhat, telling The Mirror that while it will “go down to the wire”, there is “huge confidence” everything will go to plan on the day.

They added: “This is naturally a huge event and the important point is everyone is pulling in the right direction.

“The King and Queen Consort want it to be perfect, as does everyone involved, which is why everything is being done to make it so.”

Originally published as Prince Harry to attend King Charles’ coronation, but Meghan Markle will stay away