Prince Harry Says He Has ‘Huge Compassion’ For Prince Charles, Prince William: ‘My Father And My Brother, They Are Trapped’
In his CBS interview with Oprah Winfrey, Prince Harry shared how he felt “trapped” in the royal family, and how he had “huge compassion” for his father, Prince Charles, and brother, Prince William, because they were still trapped in that situation.
Harry and his wife, Meghan Markle, told Winfrey how they had been cut off from the royal family’s financial support and security after they made the decision to step back from being senior royals.
“Do you think you would have left or ever stepped back were it not for Meghan?” Winfrey asked.
“No, the answer to your question is no,” Harry replied. “I wouldn’t have been able to, because I myself was trapped, as well. I didn’t see a way out.”
“But you’d had this life, your whole life,” said Winfrey. “This has been your life your whole life.”
“Yeah, but, you know, I was trapped, but I didn’t know I was trapped,” said Harry. “But the moment that I met Meg, and then our worlds sort of collided in the most amazing of ways, and then to see how –”
“Please explain how you, Prince Harry, raised in a palace and a life of privilege — literally, a prince — how you were trapped,” Winfrey interjected.
“Trapped within the system, like the rest of my family are,” Harry explained. “My father and my brother, they are trapped. They don’t get to leave. And I have huge compassion for that.”
Winfrey questioned him further, noting that for an outside observer, they would see him “enjoying” his royal life. “We didn’t get the impression that you were feeling trapped in that life.”
“Enjoying the life because there were photographs of me smiling while I was shaking hands and meeting people?” Harry replied. “That’s — that’s a part of the job. That’s a part of the role. That’s what’s expected. No matter who you are in the family, no matter what’s going on in your personal life, no matter what’s just happened, if the bikes roll up and the car rolls up, you got to get dressed, you got to get in there. You wipe your tears away, shake off whatever you’re thinking about, and you got to be on your ‘A’ game.”
Winfrey then asked Harry what he thought his mother, the late Princess Diana, would think about what had happened. “What would you think your mom would say about this stepping back, this decision to step back from the royal family? How would she feel about this moment?”
“I think she would feel very angry with how this has panned out, and very sad. But, ultimately, she’d — all she’d ever want is for us to be happy.”
Watch the video above, via CBS.
