Queen’s top aide Sir Edward Young in firing line over Harry, Meghan and Andrew

Princess Anne and Prince Edward have joined calls for Sir Edward Young to be sacked over the ‘civil war’.

Some inside the palace suggest the US PR team used by Meghan leaked the story that she and Prince Harry are moving to Canada. Picture: AFP

Senior members of the royal family are calling for the resignation of the Queen’s top aide for failing to prevent the civil war that has led to Harry and Meghan fleeing to Canada.

Sir Edward Young, the Queen’s private secretary, was installed when Christopher Geidt was ousted two years ago by Prince Charles and Prince Andrew, but he is now a scapegoat for warring Windsors.

Senior courtiers and members of the family — understood to include Princess Anne and Prince Edward — believe he has failed to get a grip on the warring factions or to deal with the scandal that has engulfed the Duke of York.

Insiders said Young had let down the Queen because he was unable to tell Charles, William and Harry things they did not want to hear or bang heads together the way Lord Geidt was able to do.

As Lord Geidt’s deputy, Sir Edward, 53, helped to plan the Queen’s diamond jubilee and played a key role in engineering the James Bond parachute stunt at the opening of the London 2012 Olympic Games.

But courtiers privately admit the circumstances in which he got the job have contributed to a lack of personal authority that has made it difficult for him to defend the Queen’s interests.

A source in the royal household said: “All the guns are blazing at Edward Young. He has not geared up the system to protect the monarch. Very senior members of the royal family think he should go.”

The concerns expressed privately by Anne and Edward are significant because they have largely avoided becoming embroiled in the internecine warfare between Harry and William and between both princes and their father.

The source added: “There is a massive blame game. Edward Young was appointed by Charles because he wanted someone weak. But he has not been wise or intuitive. This Harry and Meghan thing has not suddenly happened. The Prince Andrew situation didn’t just happen. Senior officials like Geidt were warning about this stuff years ago, which is why Charles and Andrew got rid of him.

“The Harry and Meghan situation is a symptom of a bigger problem, which is the implosion of the centre in the palace. Everyone hopes the Queen lives for ever but her presence means the whole system has been in arrested development. Edward Young is supposed to hold it all together but he can’t.”

A second source close the royals called for courtiers to get a grip on the warring family factions: “The people running the palaces are f...king this up in a major way. They’re supercharging the arguments their bosses are having. Christopher Geidt used to hold the line reasonably well. Both brothers respected him. He was a grown-up. He was capable of and willing to tell Charles and William things they didn’t want to hear.

“If Geidt had still been there it’s hard to see it unfolding as it has. There’s no discipline. Everything leaks and then everyone engages in swearing and shouting and blames each other.”

Sources say Prince Harry fears that details of his plans to move to Canada were leaked by someone close to either Charles or William. But others point the finger of blame at Meghan’s American PR team, who are said to be close to the journalist who wrote the story.

Senior courtiers are now concerned that Harry and Meghan will live full-time in Canada and effectively become “king and queen of Canada”, something they fear would threaten the integrity of the Commonwealth.

“They’re terrified of Harry just getting on a plane,” one well-placed source said. “They absolutely do not want Harry settling in Canada.

“They’re very concerned about Canada saying: ‘Can we have him as governor-general?’ They are fearful that will lead to a split in the Commonwealth.”

The Sunday Times