Buckingham Palace says Prince Harry will not be staying at the palace during his visit to London this week, despite his team announcing this morning that he had accepted an invitation to do so.
Royal sources say the duke had not formally responded to the royal residence offer by deadline at the end of last week, and was told over the weekend that he could no longer stay at Buckingham Palace.
It is understood that the palace requires a minimum notice period to ensure that the guest can be accommodated and royal household staff can be made available.
A spokesman for Prince Harry said that despite their previous statement, they understand that the offer to stay at the palace has now been “withdrawn” – a decision they described as “disappointing”.
According to Buckingham Palace, Prince Harry was offered to stay at the palace, but Sussex’s team was unable to confirm whether to accept and then rejected the offer.
According to the palace, the Duke’s team later decided to stay there, but it was too late to do anything.
The palace says the decision has been communicated to Prince Harry.
There were also concerns about the prince remaining at the palace when the outcome of a trial in his claims against Associated Newspapers was published on Tuesday.
In response, a spokesman for the Duke of Sussex described the situation differently, saying that Buckingham Palace had withdrawn the proposal, which had been officially accepted.
The Sussex version of events said the timing of the outcome of the trial was already known last week and dismissed this as a factor.
“It is therefore unclear why, having formally accepted the offer of accommodation, it was withdrawn at the last minute,” a spokesman for the Duke of Sussex said.
This bitter war of words is a scandal that shows how much mistrust and poor communication exists between the two camps – the Sussex team and Buckingham Palace.
Both sides have put forward conflicting versions of the invitation to stay at Buckingham Palace, with no indication that either side has accepted the other’s version.
This could further complicate the meeting between King Charles and Prince Harry expected this week.
Prince Harry is traveling to the UK to promote next year’s Invictus Games in Birmingham and charity events.
It has already become clear that Pearns will not accompany his wife Meghan and two children, Archie and Lilibeth, on a visit to London after it was confirmed that the family would not be provided with taxpayer-funded police protection.
But it is possible they will join Prince Harry in Birmingham later this week to promote the Invictus Games.
It is unclear whether the meeting between King Charles and his two grandchildren, aged seven and five, whom he has not seen in person for four years, will take place as per the revised schedule.
During his visit to Birmingham, Prince Harry is expected to visit the city’s children’s hospital and the National Exhibition Center Birmingham, where the Invictus Games, held for wounded servicemen, will take place.
It was reported that the latter part of the trip will also include a visit to Althorp in Northampton, the family estate of Prince Harry’s mother, Diana, Princess of Wales. It is understood he planned to take his wife and children to his mother’s private grave.
The Duke of Sussex’s long-running dispute with the UK government over security dates back to his decision to step back from his role as a senior member of the royal family in 2020 and move to the US with his family.
He challenged the decision of the Royal and VIP Executive Committee’s Risk Management Board that, because he was going to be an infrequent visitor to the UK, his safety would be assessed on a case-by-case basis.
He has previously said he would not bring his family into the country without enhanced security measures, telling the BBC in 2025 that he “cannot see a world in which I would bring my wife and children back to the UK at this time.”
The last time the Duke and Duchess of Sussex were together in the UK was in 2022, during the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II.
He has since traveled the country alone and met his father during a trip last September.