LONDON (AP) – Allies in the British royal family rejected on Saturday claims made by Prince Harry in his new memoir, which paints the monarchy as a cold, unfeeling institution that has failed to nurture or sustain him.
Buckingham Palace has not officially commented on the book. But British newspapers and websites were brimming with quotes from anonymous “royal insiders,” refuting Harry’s allegations. One said his public attacks on the royal family took a toll on the health of Queen Elizabeth II, who died in September.
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Veteran journalist Jonathan Dimbleby, biographer and friend of King Charles III, said Harry’s revelations were of the sort “that you would expect … from some sort of B-list celebrity” and that the King would be pained and frustrated. .
“His concern … is to act as head of state for a nation that we all know is in quite troubled shape,” Dimbleby told the BBC. “I think he’ll think this is in the way.”
Harry’s book, Replacement, is the latest in a series of very public statements by the prince and his wife Meghan since they left the royal life and moved to California in 2020, citing what they saw as the media’s racist treatment of Meghan , that he is biracial, and lack of support from the palace. It follows an interview with Oprah Winfrey and a six-part Netflix documentary released last month.
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Harry isn’t the first British royal to divulge family secrets – both of his parents used the media when their marriage fell apart. Charles collaborated on Dimbleby’s 1994 book and accompanying TV documentary, which revealed the then-heir to the throne had been having an affair during his marriage to Princess Diana.
Diana gave her side of the story in a BBC interview the following year, famously saying “there were three of us in this marriage” in reference to Charles’ relationship with Camilla Parker Bowles.
But Replacement goes into far more detail on private conversations and personal grievances than any previous real revelation.
In the ghostwritten memoir, Harry discusses his grief over his mother’s death in 1997 and his long-simmering resentment at his role as a royal ‘reserve’, overshadowed by the ‘heir’ – older brother, Prince William. He recounts arguments and a physical altercation with William, reveals how he lost his virginity (in a field) and describes cocaine and cannabis use.
Harry says his brother “grabbed me by the collar, ripped off my necklace, and threw me to the floor” during an argument about his “rude” wife Meghan.
“I landed on the dog bowl,” Harry added, saying he called his therapist after the one-sided confrontation.
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He also says he killed 25 Taliban fighters while serving as an Apache helicopter pilot in Afghanistan, a claim criticized by both the Taliban and British military veterans.
Replacement it should be released worldwide on Tuesday. The Associated Press obtained an initial Spanish-language copy.
Harry said he expects counterattacks from the palace. He has long complained of “leaks” and “tells” of stories to the media by members of the royal family.
In an interview due to air on ITV on Sunday – one of several he has recorded to promote the book – Harry says people who accuse him of invading his family’s privacy ‘do not understand or do not want to believe that my family has I informed the press.”
“I don’t know how being silent is ever going to make things better,” she said.
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