Meghan Markle was 'never likely' to come to the King's Coronation after being put in an 'impossible position', royal sources have said.
The Mirror reports that Prince Harry will be attending his father's crowning, while Meghan will stay at home with their children. Sources involved in the planning of the event say Harry went through weeks of dialogue with Buckingham Palace.
The duke is understood to have voiced concerns over security, and reception from his family if he were to come.
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Insiders suggested that the signs were there for Meghan to skip the historic ceremony after she was entirely absent from her husband's book tour and was believed to be upset about their children's exclusion from the Coronation procession.
After previously accusing an unnamed royal of racism and claiming she was abandoned by the royals when pregnant, Meghan will remain at the couple's £11million residence in Montecito with their children, one-year-old Lilibet and Archie, whose fourth birthday is on the same day as the ceremony.
The couple's biographer Omid Scobie confirmed Archie's birthday "played a factor in the decision" and he expected it would be a "fairly quick trip to the UK" for Harry. A royal source said: "The truth of the matter is the Duchess was never likely to attend the coronation.
"The mood from California was that she felt increasingly put in an impossible position and there's a fair sense of relief that the situation is resolved after so much speculation and uncertainty. It is one thing to attend the late Queen's funeral out of respect for Her Majesty but another thing entirely to attend the start of a new reign."
Another source said palace staffers were “cheered that the circus wasn’t coming to town”, while another had sympathy for Meghan saying: “She is very much damned is she does and damned if she doesn’t.
“As a mother she’s probably doing the right thing by her young children which should be applauded.”
Harry's stay in the UK will be brief, with the duke heading quickly back to California to join the celebrations for Archie's birthday. The duke will only be attending the ceremony and not taking part in other coronation festivities during the three-day bank holiday weekend.
It will be the first time Harry, 38, will see his family since the late Queen’s funeral last September and the first time he will come face to face with his father and brother, Prince William since savaging them in his explosive memoir, Spare, in January. Harry and Meghan have spent the last two years railing against the royal family in a series of explosive interviews and a blockbuster six part Netflix series.
They told US chat show queen Oprah Winfrey how an unnamed member of the family made racist remarks about the colour of their unborn children’s skin, while Meghan claimed she was left feeling suicidal over her alleged treatment at the hands of the institution. Royal sources also speculated as to what kind of reception the Duke and Duchess of Sussex would receive at the event likely to be attended by hundreds of thousands, after they were jeered alongside a smattering of cheers at St Paul’s cathedral last year for the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee service of Thanksgiving.
Buckingham Palace confirmed Harry’s attendance on Wednesday - 24 hours after The Mirror exclusively revealed chaotic plans at the heart of the event. Astonishingly, with just three weeks to go, just one rehearsal for the coronation has taken place, which sources say overran “significantly”.
Seating plans have still not been decided and builders have been drafted in to build a ramp over fears the King could stumble in his heavy ceremonial robes while walking up to his throne chair after being crowned. Buckingham Palace denied the claims, with aides insisting everything was running smoothly.
Meanwhile, Security measures for the King's coronation will be assessed on a "case-by-case basis" amid a "huge policing operation" - with the Duke of Sussex preparing to return to the UK for the historic occasion. Policing minister Chris Philp said yesterday (THURS) he hopes the high profile crowning of Charles and the Queen Consort will be similar in success to the "fantastic" handling of the late Queen's funeral.
One of the main worries for Harry, 38, is the ongoing issue of his personal security when travelling to the UK. The duke is still engaged in a long running case against the Home Office over his decision to strip him of his security detail after he quit his royal role.
Months ago, Harry was criticised for revealing in his memoir that he killed 25 Taliban insurgents while fighting in Afghanistan, with security experts suggesting it has made him and those associated with him targets. Asked what effect Harry's presence will have on security measures at the coronation, Mr Philp told LBC: "Those obviously get assessed on a case-by-case basis."
On whether there will be a significant additional cost due to the duke's attendance, Mr Philp added: "I'm not going to get into people's individual protection arrangements but, by the way, we're providing protection for hundreds of foreign heads of state, overseas heads of state who are attending as well.
"It's a huge policing operation, both in terms of the streets and obviously protection for individuals, so it's a big operation."
He added: "We're going to make sure that everybody involved in the coronation, including the general public, are kept safe, obviously."
Mr Philp said police did a "fantastic job" at the late Queen's funeral, adding: "We're going to work to make sure we have a similar successful operation."
More than 2,000 guests will gather at the Abbey on May 6 to witness the nation's first coronation for 70 years, with foreign dignitaries set to include First Lady Jill Biden. A mass police presence will be out in force on the streets of central London as well-wishers flock to the capital to see the King, Camilla and the royal family take part in a grand carriage procession and make an appearance on the balcony at Buckingham Palace.
A concert is being staged at Windsor Castle on Sunday May 7, with people also encouraged to come together across the country for a Coronation Big Lunch, while on Monday May 8, the focus is a Big Help Out volunteering drive. The Metropolitan Police has yet to comment on the coronation security arrangements.
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