Prince Harry and Prince William haven’t been close in a long time, but Harry likely wasn’t expecting King Charles to deal him such a major blow with one decision earlier this year.

Prince Harry’s relationship with the royal family has been less than perfect for many years. The Duke of Sussex fled royal life with his wife, Meghan Markle, back in 2020 after the couple felt the family wasn’t treating them properly. Since then, they’ve been building a life in California, but Harry has returned to the United Kingdom on a number of occasions.

Despite improving relations with his father, King Charles, the Duke of Sussex is reportedly still extremely “wounded” by Charles dealing him a major blow earlier this year.

King Charles and Prince HarryKing Charles and Prince Harry | Niall Carson/Pool/Getty Images

Prince Harry is ‘wounded’ by King Charles giving a coveted role to Prince William

When Harry left the royal family, most of his privilege went with him. Harry and Meghan were forced to strip their HRH titles, and Harry was stripped of his military titles. Still, the prince felt it would be worth it to live a life of greater freedom. And while that has likely had its positives, Harry was still extremely hurt when he learned that Charles had given William a role that Harry had always wanted. Earlier this year, William was named Colonel-in-Chief of the Army Air Corps, an organization for which Harry had previously served — and the younger prince was left “deeply” upset by the decision and remains so today.

“[Harry] repeatedly voiced his sadness in having to give up his honorary military appointments after he and Meghan quit royal duties to seek their fortunes overseas,” royal expert Emily Andrews told Women Magazine, via Express. “Old pals say it will have wounded him deeply to see his elder brother, Prince William, handed the role.”

But William could be happy about receiving the role because he reportedly thinks so lowly of his brother’s decisions in recent years. “Some could argue it really is the ultimate revenge given the brickbats Harry has thrown, but I’m not so sure … For me, it just deepens the already gaping wound between the two siblings who used to be so close,” Andrews continued.

Prince Harry and Prince William can’t seem to get on good terms

It’s been years since the brothers were in a good place. Harry and William started having major problems back in 2018, after Harry married Meghan. As Harry distanced himself from the family, the brothers’ tension grew, and when Harry exited the family and profited off of telling his story, things supposedly got much worse between him and William.

These days, Harry and William reportedly don’t speak. Harry has visited the UK twice this year, and on both occasions, he did not have any contact with his brother. It seems that at this point, the two might never be on good terms. Between Kate Middleton’s health and Charles’ health, there have been at least those two opportunities for Harry and William to reconnect, yet they haven’t.