NEED TO KNOW
- Prince Harry’s recent trip to Canada has caused controversy among the Duke of Sussex’s team and Buckingham Palace
- PEOPLE understands that Harry’s trip for Remembrance Day events caught palace aides by surprise, despite his team saying it had informed them
- Prince Harry kicked off the trip in Toronto earlier this month
Details surrounding Prince Harry’s recent trip to Canada are being disputed by Buckingham Palace, despite pushback from the Duke of Sussex’s team.
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():focal(897x641:899x643):format(webp)/Prince-Harry-Canada-111625-dc3cfddd73e04ca9b12f5ba21d59dc57.jpg)
Harry, 41, kicked off a trip centered around events commemorating Remembrance Day in Toronto earlier this month. (Remembrance Day is the British equivalent of Veterans Day in the U.S. and is also observed annually on Nov. 11.)
Now, PEOPLE understands that Harry’s trip to Canada caught palace aides by surprise, despite the Duke of Sussex’s team saying it had informed them.
When Harry’s team announced the trip on Nov. 3 — just as Prince William touched down in Rio for his Earthshot Prize week — they indicated that royal communications staff had been informed in advance.
However, palace aides say they were caught off guard by the announcement.
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():focal(935x679:937x681):format(webp)/Prince-Harry-Canada-veterans-111625-fe86347ca9d44f9aa00b55b51938fff5.jpg)
Earlier this year, Harry reportedly offered to share his official schedule with the royal family, in what appeared to be an olive-branch gesture amid continued tensions.
The plan would provide transparency and help avoid conflicts between Harry and Meghan Markle’s public outings and the British royal family’s engagements, and therefore claims of trying to overshadow each other.
Prince Harry and Prince William’s relationship is strained amid a rift that became public when Harry and Meghan, 44, stepped back from their royal roles in the U.K. in 2020 and moved to California. The divide deepened after the couple’s 2021 interview with Oprah Winfrey, Netflix docuseries and Harry’s bestselling book — each delivering criticism of the royal family.
Harry had a groundbreaking meeting with the royal brothers’ father, King Charles, in September, spending time together in person for the first time in 19 months. A former royal aide told PEOPLE the reunion was “a massive step in the right direction.”
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():focal(731x363:733x365):format(webp)/Prince-Harry-Prince-William-111625-3-2269d9e9db1b4d9eab043ea624acdb1e.jpg)
The mixed messaging between Prince Harry and the palace comes after the Duke of Sussex and Meghan faced controversy surrounding their attendance at Kris Jenner’s James Bond-themed 70th birthday party.
A day after the star-studded event, fans noticed that Harry and Meghan had been removed from a carousel of photos posted on Jenner and Kim Kardashian’s Instagram accounts.
PEOPLE understood that the photos were deleted because the duo had checked “no” on a photo consent form, but a source close to the event later said that wasn’t the case, stating, “There were no consent forms.”
Harry and Meghan attended the lavish celebration, held at Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez Bezos’ Beverly Hills mansion, alongside other stars including Mariah Carey, Paris Hilton, Vin Diesel and Adele.
A source previously told PEOPLE that Meghan and Harry “arrived hand-in-hand and looked very happy” at the party.