It’s been more than 50 years since the last monarch of the United Kingdom was coronated.
For some, King Charles‘ upcoming coronation will be the first of their lifetime, when the ceremony commences on May 6. The last coronation was that of Queen Elizabeth II on June 2, 1953, nearly 70 years ago. King Charles’ coronation will be a thing of massive, luxurious formality, as mythical-sounding items are collected and utilized in an effort to maintain a centuries-old — and occasionally absurd — tradition.
The stuffy and thoroughly overstuffed affair looms ever closer, and as it does, people can’t help but wonder if royal family drama will sour the event. We’ve largely left drama between Princes Harry and William, along with their wives, Meghan Markle and Kate Middleton, in the past, but fresh royal happenings are bringing the wrought siblings back into conversations. Harry, who was named Duke of Sussex ahead of his wedding to Markle, suffered a contentious relationship with the press and his own family in the wake of his marriage to Markle. This discord persisted for several years, before Harry and Meghan announced their intent to step back as working royals, and retired to the States, where Markle is originally from. This move drew heavy scrutiny from the British press and — reportedly — the Queen, who was rumored to be very upset by Harry’s decision.
The Queen’s passing isn’t likely to change many things for Harry and Meghan, who reportedly also suffer a difficult relationship with Kate and William, but Harry’s loyalty to his station may see the estranged family come back together for King Charles’ coronation. Questions about their attendance already litter the web, as people wonder if the couple will make a showing for the long-awaited event.
Are Prince Harry and Meghan Markle attending King Charles’ coronation?
Harry and Meghan are in an awkward spot when it comes to the royal family. They burned a lot of bridges — most of which were pre-scalded by contentious relationships — when they removed themselves from royal life, and injured feelings aren’t likely to have healed just yet. In fact, some members of the royal family are more upset than ever, after Harry and Meghan aired a highly-publicized interview with Oprah Winfrey, discussing the abuse they suffered at the hands of the royal family, on top of a scathing documentary and Harry’s own memoir, Spare.
Each of these releases, which reached the public between 2021 and late 2022, paint a damaging picture of the royal family and further widened the gap between Harry, Meghan, and the rest of the royal family. Few people expect to see Harry and Meghan return to any kind of royal affair in the near future, but King Charles’ coronation makes sense as an exception. It’s a massive affair, after all, and all but requires the attendance of each member of the royal family.
Not all of them will be in attendance, however, which comes as a small surprise to those who’ve followed Meghan and Harry’s story. Meghan does not plan to attend the coronation, instead choosing to stay home with her and Harry’s children, but her husband is set to attend. In doing so, he’ll miss his son’s birthday, which falls on the same date as the coronation, but he’ll likely ease some wounded feelings in the process.
Mere months after levying accusations of racism and media manipulation at members of the royal family, Harry plans to make the trip to Westminster Abbey to support his father’s coronation. It is still unclear if he plans to carve out time to discuss the family’s conflicted history while he’s there, but it seems safe to say that he won’t be reconciling with his father or brother anytime soon. Longtime royal family fans can catch Harry among the attendees of King Charles’ coronation on May 6, while Markle stays put at the couple’s Montecito home, celebrating Archie’s fourth birthday.
