Prince William Ignored Harry's Last Minute Plea In Queen Elizabeth's Final Hours, Royal Insider Reveals
Prince Harry reached out to Prince William during their grandmother Queen Elizabeth II's final hours but received no reply from his estranged older brother, according to a royal author.
In his new biography about the late monarch, "A Voyage Around the Queen," which was serialized in the Daily Mail, Craig Brown detailed the events leading up to Queen Elizabeth's death at age 96 at Balmoral Castle in Scotland on Sept. 8, 2022.
On that day, Prince Harry and his wife Meghan Markle were in London for the WellChild Awards when he received a call from his father, then-Prince Charles, that Queen Elizabeth's "health has taken a turn," Brown wrote.
Prince Harry and Markle canceled their appearance at the event and made plans to visit his ailing grandmother.
According to the royal biographer, the Duke of Sussex immediately sent Prince William a text message asking if he and his wife Kate Middleton were flying to Scotland to see Queen Elizabeth.
Prince Harry reportedly asked his older brother when and how they would travel to Balmoral, but Brown wrote that the Prince of Wales did not respond to his message.
The brothers have had a strained relationship since Prince Harry and Markle quit royal duties and moved to California in 2020.
Prince Harry also discussed his last-minute plea to Prince William in his bombshell memoir, "Spare," which dropped last year.
"I immediately texted Willy to ask whether he and Kate were flying up. If so, when? And how? No response. Meg and I looked at flight options," Prince Harry wrote in his book.
As they were making travel plans, Prince Harry received another call from his father, who asked him not to bring Markle to Balmoral, Brown wrote.
The duke initially opposed Charles' request, telling his dad that the reason he gave was "nonsensical and disrespectful," according to the book.
Charles ended up apologizing to his son and "explaining that he doesn't want too many people around," the royal author wrote.
He also told Prince Harry that "none of the wives" would be going to the castle, including Princess Kate, who remained in London at the time.
"Then that's all you needed to say," Prince Harry responded.
Prince William flew with Prince Edward, his wife Sophie, and Prince Andrew, while Prince Harry chartered a private plane to head to Scotland.
However, Prince Harry was not able to make it in time to see his grandmother one last time before she passed away.
When his plane touched down at Aberdeen airport, he got a text message from Markle that read: "Call me the moment you get this."
The Duke of Sussex then saw the heartbreaking news of Queen Elizabeth's death on the BBC website and realized he was "too late," Brown wrote.
In "Spare," Prince Harry recalled being greeted by Princess Anne after he arrived at Balmoral and being led to his "Granny's" bedroom to see her.
He also opened up about the regret he feels over not having been able to spend similar time with Princess Diana when she died in a car crash in Paris in 1997.
"I moved ahead uncertainly, and there she was. I stood, frozen, staring. I stared and stared. It was difficult, but I kept on, thinking how I'd regretted not seeing my mother at the end," Prince Harry wrote. "Years of lamenting that lack of proof, postponing my grief for want of proof. Now I thought: Proof. Careful what you wish for."
A state funeral was held for Queen Elizabeth on Sept. 19, 2022, and she was laid to rest in George's Chapel at Windsor Castle.
