The Duke of Sussex greatly misunderstood his role as the second born son to the King, according to one expert, who says he had a far more important position within the Firm
Prince Harry has long claimed that he has lived his entire life in the shadow of Prince William as the ‘spare’, even using it as the title for his tell-all autobiography. According to the Duke of Sussex, his role as the second born son to the King was to be a back-up monarch in the event his older brother was not able to fulfil his role as the future King.
However, former BBC royal correspondent Jennie Bond believes that Prince Harry had a more important position to play within the royal family at large: one that he could’ve learned from his aunt, Princess Anne. The King’s sister, who was also dubbed the ‘spare’ as the second sibling to Charles, has led a life devoted to the Firm, often referred to as the “hardest working royal”.
As Harry wrote in his memoir, it was his father King Charles who first used the harsh nickname of ‘spare’ to refer to his youngest son, in reaction to Princess Diana giving birth to a second boy. Harry said his dad’s words were: “Wonderful! Now you’ve given me an heir and a spare – my work is done.”
But according to Jennie Bond, Prince Harry should’ve sought guidance from the Princess Royal on how to support the royal family throughout his life, rather than focusing on his unofficial title as the ‘spare’.
Bond told the Mirror : “She could have told her nephew that ‘playing second fiddle’ is the wrong way to look at his status. Instead, as she has shown, the second born can be an invaluable support to the institution of monarchy, and a vital friend, confidant and wingman/woman to the monarch.
“She could have explained that they are a team, a firm, working together to keep the monarchy relevant and using their platform to help charities and communities.”
The royal expert also believes that while other royal commentators have claimed that Prince Harry could use his relationship with Princess Anne to mend the royal rift with his father, that it is too late for the Duke to lean on his aunt for help to initiate a royal reconciliation.
Bond said: “Yes Anne woud have been the perfect person to offer advice and guidance, but sadly, this is no longer relevant as Harry has made it quite clear that he has no desire to return to life as a working royal.”
The former BBC royal correspondent also speculated that Princess Anne may not want to get involved in rehashing the drama between Harry and Charles, and even questioned whether the Princess Royal knew the extent of the family rift.
She said: “It may be that the King has discussed his family troubles with Anne, but I rather doubt that she would want to get involved. To Anne, loyalty is paramount, and I suspect she feels that Harry has been extremely disloyal to his father, his brother and the monarchy. She might well find that hard to forgive.”
