Birthday wish from King Charles to absent Harry’s son, Archie

The Duke of Sussex declined to join the private party at Buckingham Palace following the coronation.

Prince Harry wore a morning suit from Dior along with his Afghanistan and Jubilee medals and a Royal Victorian Order star and neck decoration, Picture: Getty Images

The King wished his grandson Prince Archie a happy fourth birthday during an emotional family gathering after he was left at home for the Duke of Sussex’s brief visit alone to Britain.

Harry declined to join the private party at Buckingham Palace following the coronation during which his father acknowledged his absent grandchildren, Archie and Princess Lilibet, one.

The duke was already at Heathrow. What could turn out to be his final appearance on the royal stage ended with a hasty departure after less than 29 hours in the country .

The King, 74, seemed “genuinely quite disappointed” that Harry did not stay for the celebration while other members of the family “breathed a sigh of relief”, a source told the Daily Mail.

The Prince of Wales, 40, congratulated his father on his momentous day.

The King responded by raising a glass to William’s children, Prince George, nine, who also served as a page of honour, Princess Charlotte, eight, and Prince Louis, five.

He also toasted “those that weren’t there” and wished Archie happy birthday “wherever he was”, said the source. Charles has barely seen Archie and met Lilibet only briefly during last year’s Platinum Jubilee.

Harry, 38, arrived at Heathrow for the flight back to California even before the King and Queen had posed for official photographs. His presence during the coronation at Westminster Abbey was often obscured from television cameras by a feather from the Princess Anne’s hat.

Although Harry was sitting only two rows behind William, there was no public interaction between the brothers.

The duke appeared to have been demoted in the seating plan since the late Queen’s funeral, when he was in the second row at the abbey directly behind the King. At the other end of the pew sat another outcast, the Duke of York, 63.

It was Harry’s first public appearance alongside the royals since he criticised his family in his memoir, Spare. His wife, Meghan, 41, remained at home in Monte­cito with their two children, where she held a birthday party for family and friends.

He left immediately after the service with a police escort to Heathrow. He was in such a rush to leave he was still wearing his morning suit when he arrived at the airport. Harry’s smile as he entered the VIP Windsor Suite was a marked contrast to the forlorn expression during the coronation.

Hiss British Airways flight to Los Angeles landed just before 6.30pm local time. He hoped to be home in time to put Archie to bed.

Harry had arrived in London at 11.20am on Friday but did not join the King, Queen or the Prince of Wales at pre-coronation events. He spent the night at Frogmore Cottage, the family home at Windsor, for possibly the final time, having been asked by his father to leave the property after moving to the US.

The duke entered Westminster Abbey alongside his fellow non-working royal cousins — Zara Tindall, Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie. He appeared to congratulate Eugenie and her husband, Jack Brooksbank, on her pregnancy. Harry had a brief discussion with the Archbishop of Canterbury, who had conducted his marriage five years ago and is reported to have been asked to help to persuade him to attend the coronation.

The duke wore a morning suit from Dior along with his Afghanistan and Jubilee medals and a Royal Victorian Order star and neck decoration. During the service he was seen to speak the words: “God save King Charles. Long live King Charles. May the King live for ever.”

Harry will have to return to London for a series of legal cases against the media. His seven-week privacy case against the publisher of the Daily Mirror begins at the Royal Courts of Justice on Wednesday. Harry is scheduled to give evidence from the witness box for a day next month. The publisher denies his claims.

THE TIMES