After King Charles and Prince Harry reunited during the Duke of Sussex's recent U.K. trip, recent reports have suggested that The King and Prince William are at odds with each other. Royal expert Tina Brown even suggested that the Prince of Wales's "parenting dedication always seems couched as a tacit criticism of The King's own paternal deficiencies." But according to multiple palace insiders, there's no issues between The King and his heir.
"It's evident there's an attempt to manufacture division between them, when in reality, no such rift exists," a source told the Daily Mail. "In truth, their relationship is as strong as ever, they are aligned in their work, with many areas of shared interest, and united in their vision for the role of the Royal Family."
Another insider added that William and The King can clash at times, but at the end of the day, they have the same end goal. "Like many father-son relationships, there are occasional personal and competitive tensions," the source said. "Both are very driven individuals and have very similar interests such as the environment, conservation, the military and helping deprived communities."
The King is seen with Prince William and his family at Trooping the Colour 2025.
The King and Prince William are seen in 2024.
That being said, The King and the Prince of Wales are supporting their individual causes "in quite different ways," the insider added. "Does that sometimes bring them into competition with one another? Yes, to be fair, it does. But ultimately they have the same goal: to make life better for the people of this country."
One source suggested that although they can argue, the two are quite similar at heart. "The funny thing is that if they met as strangers at a dinner party they would find they had so much in common and were such natural bedfellows that they would be talking until 3am," the insider told the Daily Mail.
And when it comes to Prince William's focus on family, one insider suggested that The King lets his son take royal duties at his own pace. "The Prince of Wales has had a universally sh***y time of late...he lost his beloved grandmother, his brother, and has faced terrible heartache with his father and his wife. If this [way of doing things] makes him feel that much more happy and confident when the moment comes and he accedes him to the throne, then that's something his father supports."
