Robin Millard -
Prince Harry and his wife Meghan’s unilateral decision to walk away from front-line royal duties leaves the British monarchy’s future wobbling.
It also piles the pressure on his brother Prince William, who, along with his wife Kate, will have to shoulder more of the burden of representing the institution to a younger generation.
Harry, 35, and Meghan, 38, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, were set to become an increasingly important cornerstone of the monarchy in the decades to come.
But their shock decision to step back from being senior royals throws all that up in the air.
Queen Elizabeth II is 93 and it has long been signalled that when her eldest son Prince Charles inherits the throne, he wants a slimmed-down monarchy tightly focused on him, his wife Camilla, his sons William and Harry and their children.
Harry’s role was meant to be as a rock of support to William as he in turn becomes heir to the throne, prince of Wales and eventually king.
The two brothers were exceptionally close growing up, together coming through the death of their mother Diana, princess of Wales, in a 1997 car crash when William was 15 and Harry 12.
But Harry’s determination to go his own way with Meghan has seen the brothers — at Harry’s own admission — drift apart.
While William is a cautious character, Harry is combustible and prone to impulse.
Harry’s announcement that he and Meghan will step back, rip up relations with the media, partially relocate to North America and seek a private income — without having consulted Queen Elizabeth or Charles first — will have done little to diminish his hothead reputation.
And the monarchy has traditionally been ruthless in cutting loose rogue royals to ensure the institution’s survival.
King Edward VIII chose to abdicate in 1936 in order to marry twice-divorced US socialite Wallis Simpson. They lived the rest of their lives in exile in France.
In 1996, Diana was stripped of the title “her royal highness” when she divorced Charles, as was Sarah when she divorced Prince Andrew, Queen Elizabeth’s second son.
Andrew himself was forced to cut all royal duties for the for the foreseeable future in November last year, following a bungled television interview on his relationship with convicted US offender Jeffrey Epstein. — AFP
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