Prince Harry was “infuriated” after King Charles refused to put Meghan Markle on the royal family payroll, a new book claims.
The monarch reportedly broke the news to the “spare” prince in 2016, just moments after Harry revealed he planned on marrying the American actress, royal correspondent Robert Jobson wrote in his new book, “Our King.”
“Are you sure, Harold?” Prince William asked his younger brother.
Then-Prince Charles delivered the second blow — rather than congratulating Harry, the future king said he couldn’t afford to pay Meghan as a member of the royal family because he was already bankrolling Camilla and William’s growing family, Jobson states in an excerpt obtained by the Daily Mail.
“This infuriated Harry,” wrote Jobson, who also authored two books on Princess Diana alongside her former bodyguard Ken Wharfe.
The “bombshell” led to one of the initial falling-outs between father and son.
Charles stopped taking Harry’s calls after his son swore at him and repeatedly asked for funds. “When the Queen asked Charles why he hadn’t given in, he told her that he wasn’t a bank,” Jobson wrote.
Jobson theorizes that all the incidents Harry and Meghan have publicly whined about — such as the spat between Kate Middleton and Meghan in the leadup to her wedding, when the actress said the then-pregnant Duchess must have been suffering from “baby brain” — were made bigger in their minds because of King Charles’ initial refusal to accept Meghan as a working, patrolled royal.
Harry had a strong inkling that William disapproved of Meghan and considered their romance a “whirlwind affair,” the book claims.
Meghan felt Kate was “stand-offish” from their initial meeting, forming an uncomfortable relationship that continued through their years as in-laws.
Even Queen Elizabeth became turned off by the couple’s antics, particularly after their 2021 interview with Oprah in which they heavily criticized the monarchy and accused the family of not accepting Meghan out of racist ideals.
The late Queen described the Sussexes’ behavior as “quite mad,” Jobson wrote, and later came to believe that Harry was “so consumed” by his love for his wife that it was “clouding his judgment.”
