Turns Out King Charles Didn’t Invite Meghan Markle and Prince Harry to Join the Royals at Balmoral Castle
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There’s a reason why Meghan Markle and Prince Harry won’t be making amends with the royal family at Balmoral Castle this summer.

King Charles didn’t invite them to join, multiple sources told People.

The update comes days after the outlet revealed that Charles is no longer speaking to Harry, which explains why he did not want the Duke and Duchess of Sussex to attend the royals’ annual late summer gathering. Meghan and Harry also weren’t invited to join the family at Trooping the Colour this year.

Harry has been most concerned about getting the right to police protection restored to him and his family while in the U.K. The couple lost that privilege when they stepped back from their working senior royal family roles in 2020; Harry tried to win the right to pay for it in court and lost his bid, but he plans to appeal the case.

He also believes his father Charles could help, with one royal source saying, “Harry is frightened [for his family’s safety in the U.K.] and feels the only person who can do anything about it is his father.”

A friend of Harry’s added that Charles has generally given Harry the cold shoulder. “He gets ‘unavailable right now,’” the source said. “His calls go unanswered. He has tried to reach out about the King’s health [Charles revealed his cancer diagnosis earlier this year], but those calls go unanswered too.”

Another source shared Meghan’s perspective on the situation with his family and the lawsuits in the U.K., telling People, “She wants him to be free of all of this, but she also knows that because of everything he’s been through and his love for [her and their children], he can’t. She wants him to live in a world where he is not burdened by this.”

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Alyssa Bailey
Senior News and Strategy Editor
Alyssa Bailey is the senior news and strategy editor at ELLE.com, where she oversees coverage of celebrities and royals (particularly Meghan Markle and Kate Middleton). She previously held positions at InStyle and Cosmopolitan. When she’s not working, she loves running around Central Park, making people take #ootd pics of her, and exploring New York City.