Prince Harry and King Charles III are pulling the public into their family feud after Britain’s reigning monarch sent a letter reminding the Duke and Duchess of Sussex of their private citizen status — despite their move back to the UK.
“Today marks four years since the death of Queen Elizabeth II, a woman who spent 70 years on the throne never making anything about herself,” Royal commentator Tom Sykes exclusively told Page Six.
“It should be a day for remembering her. Instead, thanks to Prince Harry, and I would argue the King, we have all been dragged into a squalid little argument between the duke, his father and his father’s staff, after Harry’s office told the BBC the couple was ‘surprised’ by it.”
A source close to Harry told Sykes that the surprise for Markle and Harry was “about timing, not content.”
“They agree with the letter. They accept Harry isn’t a working royal,” Sykes explained. “They just object to the fact that it landed in his office minutes before it went out and the King felt the need to restate a known fact at all.”
Page Six has reached out to reps for Harry, Markle and Charles for comment.
The King sent a letter clarifying that Markle and Harry will still not be able to use the titles of “His and Her Royal Highness,” top palace official Lord Chamberlain told the BBC Tuesday.
The statement confirmed that they will not be working royals holding official engagements and instead will be “private citizens with commercial and charitable interests.”
“It is well known that in January 2020 the Duke and Duchess stepped down from undertaking representative duties on behalf of the Sovereign, and are no longer working Members of the Royal Family,” the letter reportedly stated.
The note states that Harry and Markle cannot take a “half-in and half-out” status, and therefore, “the charitable work of the Duke and Duchess is a personal matter for them both and undertaken in their private capacity.”
Charles, 77, issued the letter “to help avoid doubt or confusion” about their status after they moved back to England at the end of August.
Palace sources told the outlet that Charles’ letter was sent to Harry’s team, the UK government, the military and lord-lieutenants.
A spokesperson for the As Ever founder and Harry told the BBC that they were “a little surprised to have not been told about this.”
Their team reportedly received the letter around 2 p.m. UK time. Harry was contacted about the letter at 3:09 p.m., and had his team respond to the letter with questions. However, the letter was sent to the media two minutes later.
Last month, Page Six confirmed that Harry, 41, and Markle, 45, would be moving back to the UK for an “extended period.” The shocking relocation comes after they resigned from their royal duties in 2020 and moved to Montecito, Calif., where they have lived with their two kids — Prince Archie, 7, and Princess Lilibet, 5, — for six years.
Sources shared at the time that they wanted to return across the pond to be closer to King Charles III — who was diagnosed with an undisclosed cancer in 2024.
They quietly moved out of their $14 million Montecito mansion two weeks ago and chartered a six-figure private jet to the UK, officially making their return on Aug. 26.
Page Six exclusively revealed that Markle and the “Spare” author were looking for a home in the Cotswolds, an elite countryside enclave where Charles and Queen Camilla’s Highgrove House residence is located.
We also revealed that their kids will be attending a posh UK prep school with a $35,000 annual tuition.
Meanwhile, Prince William and Kate Middleton’s 13-year-old son, Prince George, started classes at Eton College on Tuesday.
William and Harry are still feuding and are expected to keep their distance despite Harry and Markle moving closer to be with family.
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