There’s no doubt King Charles, 76, aka “Grandpa Wales”, is a doting grandfather to William and Kate’s three children, and his connection to tearaway grandson Prince Louis –who turned seven last week – is one of the things that he’s most proud of, with their close bond often captured on camera.
However insiders say, “King Charles sees so much of young Harry in Louis,” that he’s had a cautious word to both William and Kate.
KING CHARLES’ GUILT
“He doesn’t want Louis to feel sidelined and ignored like Harry feels he was,” says a source. “Charles has a special place in his heart for Louis, whose antics remind him dearly of Harry when he was a boy. Having said that, he doesn’t want William and Kate to succumb to Louis’ roguish charms and is keen for them to always keep a firm-but-fair close eye on him. It’s something Charles fears he failed to do with Harry.”
In his bombshell 2023 memoir Spare, Prince Harry recounted his tense and often troubled relationship with his father, who he affectionately calls Pa. According to Harry, his father – and occasionally the late Queen Elizabeth and her husband Prince Philip – would jokingly call him “the spare” to his face.
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He recounts hearing a story when he was 20, that Charles allegedly said to Diana after she gave birth to their second child.
“’Wonderful! Now you’ve given me an heir and a spare – my work is done,’” Harry wrote. “A joke. Presumably. On the other hand, minutes after delivering this bit of high comedy, Pa was said to have gone off to meet with his girlfriend. So, many a true word spoken in jest.”
BATTLE SCARS
Insiders say Charles will go to the grave with his guilt over how he handled some of Harry’s childhood pain following the death of his mother Princess Diana, and now wishes he had known better how to deal with it.
“He knows he is paying dearly for it all these years later and it may never be resolved properly between them,” says the source, adding that Charles would hate for William and Kate to go through anything similar with their children.
“It goes without saying this past year has been traumatic for the whole family and as Charles now knows, young boys can hide their pain and fears, only for it to grow into something much bigger.
“With all the ups and downs with his health, Charles has been able to speak frankly to William and Kate and has told them he will do his best to watch over and protect his beloved grandson with his cheeky grin and fun-loving personality.”
