Prince Harry Expresses Heartbreak Over Ban on Wearing Military Uniform
Prince Harry has made a poignant remark about "hanging up" military uniforms while offering guidance to former servicemen in his new Netflix documentary.
The highly anticipated series, Heart of Invictus, chronicles a group of athletes preparing for the Invictus Games, a Paralympic-style competition Harry established in 2014 for injured and sick military personnel and veterans. The most recent games were held in Dusseldorf, Germany.
The 2027 Invictus Games are scheduled for Birmingham, UK, posing a potential dilemma for the Sussexes. As the event's founder, Harry is likely to attend. Since starting her relationship with Harry in 2017, Meghan has accompanied him to every event, with their appearances at the Invictus Games being among their most prominent as a couple. However, with the upcoming Games in the UK, the question arises whether Meghan will attend. Earlier this year, Harry lost a High Court case regarding the withdrawal of his UK police protection after he relocated from Britain to the United States.
In the third episode of his documentary, Harry is seen on a video call with the UK Invictus team, where he appears to make a remark about military uniforms. Encouraging them ahead of the competition last year, he tells them: "You did it every day, wearing uniform and for one reason or another that uniform had to be hung up. That service that runs in your blood, our blood, never leaves the body. It is there."
The comment comes after Harry was banned from wearing a military uniform when he and Meghan Markle quit their royal roles, leading to the loss of his military affiliations. At King Charles' Coronation earlier this year, he wore a morning suit, unlike other royals.
He also wore a suit for his grandmother, the late Queen's funeral last year, despite calls for him to be allowed to wear military dress. However, he wore a uniform during a vigil around his grandmother's coffin in Westminster Hall.
It was later reported that Harry was left "devastated" at having to remove the "ER" symbol from his uniform, even though Prince William kept his. After the initials were not removed from William, a friend told The Sunday Times: "He [Harry] is heartbroken. To remove his grandmother's initials feels very intentional."
Reports suggested Harry nearly decided to wear the morning suit anyway to avoid "humiliation". On the same call, Harry dropped the F-bomb as he offered advice to the competitors, saying: "So when you're out there kicking a**, trying to win a medal, or just having fun, making your family incredibly proud, when you feel that feeling in your throat and you feel like you might want to cry, I mean that."
The series also captures Harry admitting "no one around me could really help" due to a lack of support network following his return from war in Afghanistan, which triggered the trauma of losing his mother, Princess Diana, in another apparent dig at the Royal Family.
