Why Did Prince Harry Stay At Hotel Instead Of Royal Residence During UK Visit? Royal Expert Explains
Prince Harry opted to stay at a hotel during his brief visit to the United Kingdom for a reason.
The Duke of Sussex immediately flew to his home country after his father, King Charles III, informed him about his cancer diagnosis. He reportedly went straight to Clarence House upon arrival and the father and son had a 30-minute meeting.
During his brief visit, Prince Harry stayed at a hotel despite the numerous royal residences in the area. Grant Harrold, a former butler who worked for King Charles for seven years, weighed in on Meghan Markle's husband's decision. He believes the "Spare" author opted to stay at a hotel in a desperate bid to show that "he's grown up enough to fund himself."
"It's strange he's not staying at any royal residences because obviously, when they were growing up, they had rooms at Clarence House and at Highgrove," Harrold told the New York Post.
"Maybe he felt that it was only fair to show that he, I'm guessing, is happy to support himself by staying in a hotel."
However, Harrold seemingly disapproved of the decision, as Prince Harry had been fighting for his security in the country. The ex-butler claimed that the decision to check into a hotel "made no sense" security-wise.
"If he was staying in one of the royal residences, the security is already there," Harrold explained. "If he's staying at a hotel, then he'll need his own security team."
He added, "Obviously, it's not the best sign if he's staying at a hotel because you'd have thought he'd possibly stay with his brother [Prince William] and sister-in-law [Kate Middleton] potentially, or at one of his father's homes, because let's face it, there are a few homes."
The Duke of Sussex is in the middle of a legal battle after allegedly being unfairly stripped off his publicly-funded security after gaving up his royal status. He claimed that the Royal and VIP Executive Committee (RAVEC) changed the level of his security. RAVEC decided not to provide him 24/7 protection and would only protect him on a "case by case" basis, depending on its assessment of the threat level.
Rafe Heydel-Mankoo, historian and broadcaster, previously commented on the issue. According to him, Prince Harry's fight was "nonsense" and he only wanted the "perks and privileges."
"This is all complete nonsense, actually, because he is getting protection," Heydel-Mankoo said.
"If he comes to attend royal events, he will receive royal protection. They have bespoke protection plans for him, depending upon his needs. But he has such an inflated impression of what he needs and his importance."
