Was Prince Harry Planning A Royal Exit For Decades?

Could it be that Prince Harry actually longed to leave the royal family long before setting eyes on Meghan Markle? Many royal watchers have claimed just that, and now one outlet is providing evidence that may back up that contention.

Harry And Meghan Made The Grand Announcement About Stepping Back At The Start Of The Year

Insider has laid out evidence that could point to Harry’s royal discontent being years in the making, not a flashbang decision that some have laid at Markle’s feet. The outlet asserts that Harry’s decision could have been hatched decades ago.

For instance, Harry himself has said that he wanted out of The Firm at one point but remained to try to “work out a role” for himself.

The decision may have been initiated in part by his mother’s death. Princess Diana died in 1997 and Harry has said that every camera flash reminds him of her demise.

Princess Diana died following a car crash in which she was being tailed by paparazzi.

Was Prince Harry’s Wish To Ditch The UK And His Family Years In The Making?

For his part, Harry has said, “The decision that I have made for my wife and I to step back, is not one made lightly. It was so many months of talks after so many years of challenges. And I know I haven’t always gotten it right, but as far as this goes, there really was no other option.”

His military life is also thought to have played a part in his wish to lead a more “normal” life. In the military he was not a prince per se, he was merely called Harry.

Harry spent years in the military beginning in 2004. In 2016 he left his post after two tours of Afghanistan and achieving the rank of captain.

How Has The Duke Of Sussex’s Military Experience Shaped Him?

To drive home the point about the military opening Harry’s eyes to a different way of life, royal watcher Kristen Meinzer told Insider, “I don’t think Harry fully got to know what ‘ordinary’ meant until he entered the military.”
“Prior to that, his life was in palaces, boarding schools, on polo fields, and other elite places that are far from how the rest of us live. The military changed that.”

In other words, Harry went from pampered to ordinary in a flash, “sleeping in the same barracks, eating the same food, wearing the same clothes, and stationed in the same war zones as people he’d never rubbed elbows with before.”

Perhaps the couple’s authorized bio, Finding Freedom, due out in August, will settle the matter once and for all?