Prince Harry has revealed Prince William and Kate’s reaction when he told them Meghan Markle was expecting their first child Archie. The Duke of Sussex recalls sharing the news at Princess Eugenie’s 2018 royal wedding in his memoir Spare.
Harry describes how they were are the reception in St George’s Hall in Windsor when he made the announcement to his older brother.
He writes: “We were in a big room, suits of armor on the walls. Strange room, strange moment.”
He says he told William, who “smiled and said we must tell Kate”.
Harry adds: “She also gave a big smile and hearty congratulations. They both reacted exactly as I hoped – as I’d wished.”
The Duke also reveals that King Charles was “delighted” when he and Meghan told him on the same day.
He says: “Just before a drink reception for the bride and groom, we cornered Pa in his study. He was delighted to learn that he was going to be a grandfather for a fourth time; his wide smile warmed me.”
Harry and Meghan welcomed their son Archie, who is now three, in May 2019. The couple have since had a second child, daughter Lilibet, who was born in California in June 2021.
The Duke’s description of the pregnancy announcement is a happier moment in his tell-all book, which is out next Tuesday but hit the shelves early in some Spanish shops in a major blunder.
In the tome, the 38-year-old makes a series of fresh revelations and claims about the Royal Family.
The Guardian newspaper reports that Harry claims William physically attacked him in a row at Nottingham Cottage over his marriage to Meghan.
The Duke also claims that in a meeting after Prince Philip’s funeral, Charles told his warring sons: “Please, boys. Don’t make my final years a misery.”
And he claims Meghan upset Kate by saying she must have “baby brain” in the run-up to the Sussexes’ 2018 royal wedding.
In further revelations, Harry admits to taking drugs including weed, cocaine and magic mushrooms in the past.
He also says he killed 25 people as a helicopter pilot in Afghanistan in comments that have seen the Taliban brand him a “big mouth loser”, as well as sparking criticism from senior military figures in the UK.
And he recounts in excruciating detail losing his virginity to an unnamed older woman who treated him like a “young stallion” in a field behind a pub in 2001 when he was 17.
Kensington Palace and Buckingham Palace have so far declined to comment on the book, which follows years of turmoil for the Royal Family amid the Megxit crisis.
Claims in the tome are widely seen as damaging Harry’s relationship with the Prince of Wales beyond repair.
The Duke has also filmed three television interviews to promote his book – two in the US and another to ITV’s Tom Bradby – which are set to air ahead of the release date.
