After losing his official titles in Megxit, Prince Harry will not wear his military uniform at Prince Philip’s funeral.
The Duke of Sussex will return to the UK while his pregnant wife Meghan Markle will stay at home in America following the doctor’s advice.
The Duke of Edinburgh’s funeral will be Prince Harry’s first ceremonial event since he and Meghan left.
The Buckingham Palace confirmed that Prince Philip will have a ceremonial funeral with no public access or procession on Saturday, April 17.
However, Prince Harry is unlikely to wear his military uniform on Saturday after losing his honorary titles in Megxit. This means that he will wear a suit instead.
Prince Harry’s positions as Captain-General of the Royal Marines, Honorary Air Commandant of RAF Honington and Commodore-in-Chief, Small Ships and Diving were all stripped off when he stepped back from his role in the Royal Family.
Prince Charles, Prince William, and Prince Edward are expected to wear their ceremonial outfits for the funeral, while Prince Andrew will be wearing a suit after he stepped back from public life “for the foreseeable future” in 2019 over his friendship with the late convicted pedophile Jeffrey Epstein.
Despite the change in Harry’s role, royal expert Richard Fitzwilliams said that it is unlikely that he would be dressed differently from Prince William.
“Anything that distinguished the brothers in that way, which would be so obvious for anyone watching, would probably be avoided,” Fitzwilliams said. “The whole thing we do not want is any form of a rift.”
“I’d suggest it would be handled in such a way as it goes totally smoothly without a hitch and no issues,” Fitzwilliams continued. “My opinion is that they would do everything possible to make sure that the spotlight on this very, very important day is where it should be, and that’s on the truly remarkable achievements of someone with superhuman energy who did so much for the Queen and his country.”
“Everybody knows there is an enormous amount of speculation, whatever happens on this issue,” Fitzwilliams said. “Relations between the brothers, we know perfectly well, are very strained.”
Fitzwilliams hopes the funeral will be the start of a new chapter for the Royal family after the explosive Oprah interview.
“It may be the beginning of the healing process,” Fitzwilliams said. “The Royal Family can come together as a family, and it is certainly absolutely essential they present a united front.”
“Achieving that after the Oprah interview and so forth will be quite a feat, but I am sure that, given the circumstances, and given the fact that both Harry and William were devoted to their grandfather, there is a very very good chance of achieving it.”
The funeral will be televised on April 17 with a national minute-long silence at 3 pm.