Prince Charles' Reaction To Harry's Latest Claims Speaks For Itself
Prince Harry seems to have a lot of opinions when it comes to life as a royal. Beyond that, he's apparently not afraid to share those opinions, feelings, and sometimes controversial truths. That's what he did once again when he sat down to chat with Dax Shepard for the actor's "Armchair Expert" podcast in May. During the interview, Harry was willing to address plenty of topics, including his strained relationship with his father, Prince Charles.
"[Charles] treated me the way that he was treated," Harry said during the honest discussion (via Page Six). He also explained, "It's a lot of genetic pain and suffering that gets passed on anyway. So we as parents should be doing the most we can to try and say, 'You know what? That happened to me I'm going to make sure that doesn't happen to you.'" On that note, he told the host that he intends to raise his son, Archie, differently.
While Harry obviously has strong feelings about his relationship with Charles, there are those who have equally intense feelings about what the duke said about his father. For instance, a former royal butler thinks that Harry is putting the relationship in serious jeopardy, while a royal expert feels like Harry's claims are "groundless." But what was Charles' reaction to what Harry said? Frankly, it might completely surprise you or it might be exactly what you expect by this point in the sticky situation.
Charles was asked about Harry's comments as well as 'suffering and pain in the family'
Following Prince Harry's revealing "Armchair Expert" interview, eyes were on the royal family to see if they would respond to the situation. Specifically, there were those who were interested to see if Prince Charles would react to what his son had said about their relationship, and that's surely why the elder royal was directly asked about his thoughts on what had been said.
According to Hello!, Charles was visiting a business in Cardiff, Wales, when a reporter approached him to inquire about Harry's statements. The representative from the BBC asked, "Sir, do you agree with Prince Harry about the suffering and pain in the family? Have you read his comments?" What did Charles say in return? Nothing! Absolutely nothing. Instead, he completely ignored the question and kept strolling around with those he was with for his visit. Clearly, his response speaks for itself and tells us that he won't be addressing this situation with the public at all.
Frankly, there are quite a few reasons why Charles might have chosen to remain tight-lipped about Harry's comments. Maybe he hadn't heard what had been said during the interview yet, perhaps the queen told him not to address the statements, or he might not have felt like it was the right time to speak out. He may have also realized that what Harry said was true. That's because Charles seemed to back up his son's claims.
Prince Charles may have confirmed Harry's claims in the past
While there's a chance that the comments that Prince Harry made about his relationship with Prince Charles on "Armchair Expert" made the elder royal uncomfortable, it's just as (if not more so?) likely that Charles felt validated by what his son had said. Why is that? Well, because Charles has said something very similar in the past that basically confirms Harry's claims that "[Charles] treated me the way that he was treated" and that "there's a lot of genetic pain and suffering that gets passed on anyway."
If you ever read "The Prince of Wales: A Biography" by Jonathan Dimbleby, then you'll know that the writer released his book following conversations with Charles about the royal's life. You'll also know, according to the Daily Mail, that the book confirms that Charles had an "unhappy childhood," and backs that claim up "with details the Prince laid bare" himself. Beyond that, as the years passed, "Prince Philip didn't always know what to make of his more sensitive son," according to E! News, which is one of the reasons why they always had a complicated relationship.
With a situation so steeped in family, feelings, and fame not to mention royal responsibilities, it's no wonder that there have been strong responses from the public.
People have strong opinions regarding Harry's comments about Charles
What Prince Harry had to say about his relationship with Prince Charles during his "Armchair Expert" interview prompted plenty of responses from the public, which isn't terribly surprising. As you might also expect, people had varied and strong reactions.
"This is quite extraordinary because not only is Harry attacking the parenting of Prince Charles, he's also attacking the parenting of the grieving Queen and recently deceased Prince Philip," GB News presenter and Daily Mail columnist Dan Wootton opined on Twitter. However, at the same time, someone else tweeted that "Anyone who thinks Prince Charles was a good father is delusional." They backed up their point by claiming that there was "a reason [Harry's late mother, Princess] Diana was intentional about protecting Harry."
On the other hand, another person felt like Harry "didn't attack Prince Charles at all" during the interview, "and, [in] fact, was very empathetic towards him." Others agreed, with yet another social media user tweeting, "I listened to Prince Harry's podcast interview twice this morning and it still shocks how much empathy he shows toward Charles. Even after everything he says he doesn't blame him [and] understands how his upbringing affected his parenting but is trying [to] do it differently for his kids."
Indeed, Harry will now have not one, but two little ones to take care of, so let's hope he is truly focused on learning from the past in order to be a good parent in the future.