Prince Harry and Meghan Markle Are "Still Uneasy" in the Royal Family, Royal Expert Says

In the aftermath of Queen Elizabeth II's sad passing, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have been more integrated in the Royal Family than they had been since their royal exit in early 2020.

Many have gone as far as to speculate that this may be the beginning of a real reconciliation between the two branches of the family, for whom relations have been tense while the Sussexes have been leading a new life in Southern California.

But for royal author Christopher Andersen, it's really not that simple.

"Everything that they do, every tiny little gesture is going to be dissected, and that adds to the pressure," he told Us Weekly of the interactions between William, Catherine, Harry and Meghan during their joint walkabout in Windsor this past weekend.

"Sure, Charles would like everybody to be there and doing their job and it's in his interest to get Harry back into the fold," Andersen continued.

"I'm not so sure William is that interested. I think he's got much more of a grudge against Harry at this time. And again, it's just going to get worse, I think, as time goes on, so we'll see how they handle it."

When asked whether the simple fact that the Prince of Wales reached out to his younger brother to invite him and the Duchess of Sussex on the walkabout was a sign of peacemaking, Andersen looked at it through the lens of grief and the exceptional circumstances it brings about.

"I do know that [William] did the reaching out, but let's not forget this is to pay their respects to their grandmother," he said.

"You know, they were so close to Elizabeth. They admired her as anyone else would their grandmother, but she was also their Queen and William in particular was a recipient of all sorts of attention from the Queen. I mean, she knew he was the future of the monarchy."

Harry, of course, was also great friends with the Queen, and they were often spotted sharing a delighted giggle together.

Though Harry was born into the Royal Family, Andersen believes that there is still an amount of distance between him, his wife and the rest of the family that hasn't been resolved.

"I just think that Harry and Meghan still are uneasy," he explained. "We’ve seen that in a recent interview that Meghan gave, so it’ll take an awful lot, I think, for those to get things back to where they were, and it’s all sad."

Here, Andersen is referring to the duchess' interview with The Cut, in which she described a still difficult relationship with the U.K.-based royals.

I can only hope that they find a way to build bridges in the near future.