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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Kieren Williams

How King Charles has prepared Prince William and Prince Harry for Coronation

King Charles III is due to be crowned on May 6 and will take centre stage alongside the Queen Consort in what is set to be a modernised ceremony.

There have been reports suggesting that some of the more esoteric traditions will be scrapped or at least partly rolled back.

Whilst Prince William, as future king, will share a lot of the spotlight with his dad, there remains questions over whether Prince Harry will be in attendance.

Whilst the Duke of Sussex has been invited, he has not yet confirmed whether he will actually go.

Reports have suggested that, along with wife Meghan Markle, the couple have been trying to negotiate their appearance with the royal family.

At the time, a spokesperson said: "I can confirm the Duke has recently received email correspondence from His Majesty's office regarding the coronation.

The once close father and sons have grown more distant in recent years (Getty Images)

"An immediate decision on whether the Duke and Duchess will attend will not be disclosed by us at this time."

But, long before the rift grew between the two brothers, and Harry up and left for America, Charles was preparing the royals for their life in front of the crowds and cameras.

Throughout countless former engagements, the brothers have gone from toddlers waving to the crowds, to senior royals leading the family and are well-equipped when it comes to public events.

Trooping the Colour debut

The royal brothers made their Trooping the Colour debuts when they were very young.

Back in 1984, William joined his family on the royal balcony aged just two-years-old.

But even younger than that, Harry hadn’t even celebrated his first birthday when he was taken onto the balcony in 1985.

Despite being so young, the crowds loved the brothers and it was the first of countless public events the brothers took part in.

Charles, pictured here with Diana, Princess of Wales, and their boys (UK Press via Getty Images)

Charles and Camilla’s wedding

In 2005, no longer toddling around in mini sailor suits, the Princes instead donned their best suits at the wedding ceremony of the then Prince of Wales.

Taking place at Windsor Guildhall, they joined Camilla’s two children Laura Lopes and Tom Parker Bowles.

In his bombshell memoirs that left some senior royals reportedly furious, Harry candidly admitted that he wanted both Charles and Camilla to be happy after "years of thwarted longing - but him and William had begged their father not to marry her initially

The wedding of Prince Charles to Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall (Getty Images)

He wrote: "I knew without question that this marriage would take Pa away from us … I didn't relish losing a second parent, and I had complex feelings about gaining a step-parent who, I believed, had recently sacrificed me on her personal PR altar.

"I was surprised to discover at their wedding that one of the things I wanted most, still, was for my father to be happy."

Prince William's wedding

The brothers have drifted apart since William’s wedding day back in 2011, but were once joined at the hip.

Harry walks with his brother ahead of his wedding to Kate Middleton (AFP via Getty Images)
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge got married in 2011 (Getty Images)

During the ceremony, Harry walked his brother to the altar and was even said to have delivered a moving speech during the reception at Buckingham Palace.

He used funny anecdotes from their childhood together and extracts of letters sent in by the public.

But in his book, he said he was forced to go along with the “bare-faced lie” that he was his brother William ’s best man, as he insisted: "Willy didn’t want me giving a best man’s speech”.

Revealing how his bitter rift with the heir to the throne hardened more than a decade ago, the Duke of Sussex said he was made to act out the role in order to spare interest into the lives of William’s two closest friends.

Harry was officially classed as William’s best man at his wedding to Kate in 2011 and even travelled with the future King to Westminster Abbey in a Bentley.

But in an astonishing declaration he claimed it was all for show and his brother’s close friends James Meade and Thomas Van Straubenzee actually gave the traditional speech at the reception.

At Harry's wedding to Meghan, William was there for his younger brother too.

Now, the brothers were front and centre, having spent years getting used to the limelight until at their own weddings they represented the future of the royal family.

Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, at the Platinum Jubilee (Getty Images)

The late Queen’s Jubilees

Queen Elizabeth II sat as monarch for decades before passing last autumn.

Prince Harry and Prince William charmed countless crowds, especially at her Golden, Diamond, and Platinum Jubilee.

In 2002, 2012, and then 2022 they delighted royal well-wishers and during the Golden celebrations flanked their father.

Meanwhile the Platinum Jubilee partly grabbed the headlines because it was the Sussexes’ first appearance at a royal event since stepping down as senior royals.

Across these, the brothers assumed more and more prominent positions, and are both assured operators at public events.

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