Prince Harry is 'invited to Buckingham Palace' after Coronation

Prince Harry is ‘invited to Buckingham Palace lunch’ after historic Coronation – as it emerges he has been ‘relegated to the third row’ seated between Eugenie and Beatrice

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Prince Harry is invited to lunch at Buckingham Palace today following the historic Coronation of his father King Charles III at Westminster Abbey, it has emerged. 

It is not yet known, however, if the Duke of Sussex, 38, will accept, given that he is expected to rush back to California to reunite with his wife Meghan Markle to celebrate their son Archie’s fourth birthday. 

The invitation will be seen by many as an olive branch from Charles after Harry’s explosive memoir Spare left several members of the Royal Family reeling – most notably his brother Prince William.

It comes after it was revealed today that the King’s youngest son – who is fifth in line to the throne – will be relegated to the third row inside the abbey for the service. 

He will be seated between Princess Eugenie’s husband Jack Brooksbank and Princess Alexandra, the cousin of the late Queen who has not worked as a royal for 10 years. They will be joined by Prince Andrew’s daughters Eugenie, 33, and Beatrice, 34, and her husband Edo Mapelli Mozzi. 

Only the senior working royals will have a front row seat to the historic ceremony, made up of Prince William and Princess Kate of Wales, the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh Edward and Sophie and their children Lady Louise and James the Earl of Wessex, as well as the ever-popular Princess Anne and her husband Tim Laurence. 

Prince Harry has been invited to lunch at Buckingham Palace today following the historic Coronation of his father King Charles III at Westminster Abbey, it has emerged (pictured together at the funeral for the late Queen last September) 

Harry will be relegated to the third row inside the abbey, seated between Princess Eugenie’s husband Jack Brooksbank and Princess Alexandra, the cousin of the late Queen who has not worked as a royal for 10 years (Pictured: Jack Brooksbank, Princess Eugenie of York, Princess Beatrice of York and Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi attend the Memorial Service For The Duke Of Edinburgh at Westminster Abbey on March 29, 2022)

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Dame Emma Thompson gives a thumbs up as she arrives for the Coronation, the first in Britain for 70 years

A source told the Sun: ‘There were discussions that the seating could be arranged on line of succession. But that would have put fifth-in-line Harry front and centre — and with William and Kate.

‘Instead the decision was working royals only at the front and work back from there. Harry will be a long way from his father.’

Sources previously told the Mail there were ‘no plans’ for Harry to join the Royal Family on the Palace balcony or to even appear in official photos.

It emerged today that the Duke jetted into the UK on a commercial flight on Friday morning, leaving passengers gobsmacked. 

The King’s son arrived from Los Angeles on American Airlines flight AA136, which landed at 11.23am at London Heathrow yesterday.

Sources this week stressed that Harry will be ‘in and out of the UK in 24 hours’. He plans to dash back straight after the two-hour ceremony to be with Meghan Markle for their son Archie’s fourth birthday. 

He was expected to spend a final evening at Frogmore Cottage last night after his father decided to evict him and his American wife just days after the release of his memoir Spare.

As was widely expected, it was confirmed by the Palace this morning that Harry and Andrew will be mere spectators to the historic Coronation Ceremony given that they are no longer working royals. 

The two men will also be absent from the procession behind the Gold State Coach that will carry the newly crowned King and Queen to the Palace after the ceremony.

It means they will miss out, too, on stepping out onto the balcony at the Palace for a traditional photo op following the service.  

All eyes are on Harry as he faces his relatives in public for the first time since he criticised Charles, Camilla and the Prince and Princess of Wales in his explosive tell-all book. 

Insiders last night said they could not rule out him having an unplanned heart-to-heart with his father after arriving to the UK.

‘Of course you can never say never,’ said one. ‘Anything is possible, especially with him. And His Majesty loves his son despite everything.’ But others felt that this was extremely unlikely.

‘To be honest it seems a bit pointless him being there. His place in the pecking order couldn’t be clearer,’ another source told the Mail.

‘Attending is probably the right thing for him to do in the long run. He can at least say he came and made the effort to be with his father on his big day… But the red carpet is most definitely not being rolled out and, as it stands, he will just be another member of the congregation.’ 

Prince Harry will be relegated to the third row with his cousins inside Westminster Abbey today for the Coronation of his father King Charles III, it has been revealed. Pictured: Prince Harry and Meghan Markle at St Paul’s Cathedral in London on June 3 last year

Sources have told the Mail that there are ‘no plans’ for him to join the Royal Family at Buckingham Palace, take part in the private family lunch or even appear in photos (Pictured: Meghan, Harry, William and Kate in 2018)

Harry (right) will be jetting straight back to his LA home after the ceremony to his wife Meghan and their two children

Sources last month suggested that other family members – with the possible exception of Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie – had no interest in talking with Harry at the Coronation beyond the most basic of greetings. 

It came after the prince publicly called on his family to apologise to himself and Meghan for what they saw as slights against them. 

READ MORE: Your ultimate guide to the Coronation: Minute-by-minute of King Charles’ big day, where to watch the procession and enjoy afternoon tea, what to wear for the weather, Tubes, roads and rail stations to avoid – and what to watch on TV

He also demanded that his father and brother sit down with him before May 6 to thrash their issues out – a meeting which never came to fruition.

Adding fuel to the fire, Harry also indicated he has enough material to fill another book, which is likely to make the royals wary of encountering him.

He is set to make a quick exit after the Coronation, flying back to the US to mark Archie’s birthday, and is expected to attend only the abbey ceremony.

Sources previously said the decision by Meghan to remain in California had come as a relief in some circles, following fears her presence could have heightened family tensions.

It is also understood there was real concern in the Sussex camp about the public reception the couple would have received if they attended the Coronation together.

Friends, including Meghan’s biographer Omid Scobie, suggested her decision was largely due to the Coronation falling on the same day as Archie’s fourth birthday.

The couple had delayed answering their invitation for weeks, causing difficulties for organisers tasked with complex seating plans, transport and security for senior members of the Royal Family, world leaders and other dignitaries.

Sources described the negotiations as a game of ‘transatlantic ping pong’, and Harry was said to have wanted numerous assurances about arrangements.

Coronation organisers admitted that they were stressed about Harry’s plans and said that it was like ‘trying to communicate with Mars’.

Asked in an interview in January whether he would attend the Coronation if invited, Harry said ‘the door is always open’.

It was then reported last month that the duke would be coming to the Coronation alone, leaving Meghan at home with their children Archie and Lilibet.

Buckingham Palace later said it was ‘pleased to confirm’ the Duke of Sussex will be at Westminster Abbey. There had been uncertainty at the Palace over the Sussexes’ attendance.

Sources last month said Charles was very pleased his youngest son is coming and his mood was described as ‘generally quite forgiving’, however, his brother William was understood to still feel betrayed and angry, particularly by the revelations in Harry’s memoirs.

One source told The Telegraph that the ‘gulf’ between the brothers, who were once as close as siblings could be, is now so large they cannot see how their relationship can ever be repaired.

But their father hoped his Coronation could heal some of those wounds, sources said. 

At his grandmother’s funeral last September, Harry and Meghan were squeezed into a corner at the end of the second row – with a candle even obscuring a clear view of the Duchess (pictured)

Harry was placed behind William for the Commonwealth Day Service at Westminster Abbey in March 2020, his final event before moving to the US (pictured)

King Charles III and Queen Consort Camilla are pictured in Malton, North Yorkshire, on April 5

The late Queen Elizabeth II, Charles, Camilla, William, Kate, Harry and Meghan attend the Commonwealth Day Service at Westminster Abbey on March 9, 2020 

Sussex supporters said Harry understood that the Coronation is the biggest day of his father’s life and felt it was right to be present, despite his attacks on the family. 

But more than one source confirmed to the Mail that there had been ‘extensive discussions’ between London and California over the issue of Harry’s attendanc.

One said: ‘Harry’s side was keen to find out, presumably because they wanted to rubber-stamp it, what the seating plan at the Abbey is. There’s been extensive back and forth about who they [Harry and Meghan] would be sitting behind if they came. And who would be behind them.’

Harry was apparently quite preoccupied by this particular detail, the source said.

Another source added: ‘This is true. There have been a lot of questions on detail for the Abbey.’

Publications with links to the Sussexes have suggested that Harry had a list of questions for the Palace about what would happen if he attended and wanted certain ‘assurances’, but did not detail what they might be.

When Harry and Meghan came to the UK for Queen Elizabeth’s Platinum Jubilee they joined other members of the Royal Family at St Paul’s Cathedral for a service of thanksgiving. But, notably and rather awkwardly, they were seated on the other side of the nave from Charles, Camilla, William and Kate.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have been shunted away from the main seats as their rift with the Royal Family has grown.

There had been hopes the Coronation could provide an opportunity for reconciliation – but as of last month, members of the Royal Family were understood not to have an appetite for it.

One source told the Daily Express: ‘The Royal Family are focused on planning for the historic occasion and have no appetite or time at this stage to think about reconciliation.’ 

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