Prince Harry recounted the three harsh words Prince William allegedly used about Meghan Markle. The remarks came shortly before Harry said their argument turned physical. Harry detailed the clash, which was allegedly centered on Markle, in his 2023 memoir, Spare. He said it happened in 2019 at Nottingham Cottage. It’s his former home on the grounds of Kensington Palace.
According to Harry, William criticized his wife and called her “difficult,” “rude,” and “abrasive.” Harry fired back, accusing William of repeating negative stories about her. “It all happened so fast. So very fast,” Harry wrote.
Harry claimed that during the altercation, William first grabbed his collar. He then ripped his necklace and knocked him down. “I landed on the dogs’ bowl, which cracked under my back, the pieces cutting into me,” Harry added. Harry continued, “I lay there for a moment, dazed, then got to my feet and told him to get out.”
The Duke of Sussex also claimed that William urged him to hit back. But he refused. William then asked Harry not to tell Markle about it. “I didn’t attack you, Harold,” Harry recalled him saying. Harry still told Markle anyway, but she “wasn’t that surprised and wasn’t all that angry… she was terribly sad.”
William has never publicly given his version of the alleged fight. Harry and William once appeared inseparable. Harry publicly admitted that the brothers had grown apart in October 2019. Speaking to ITV while promoting his documentary, Harry & Meghan: An African Journey, Harry said, “We are certainly on different paths at the moment.”
He added, “I will always be there for him as I know he will always be there for me. We don’t see each other as much as we used to because we are so busy but I love him dearly.” By March 2021, Harry said during his and Markle’s interview with Oprah Winfrey that there was even more “space” between the two.
Harry also stated, “I love William to bits. He’s my brother. We’ve been through hell together. I mean, we have a shared experience. But we, you know, we’re on different paths.” Then, in his 2023 memoir, he described William as his “beloved brother and arch-nemesis.”
“In some ways he was my mirror, in some ways he was my opposite. My beloved brother, my arch-nemesis, how had that happened?”
― Prince Harry, Spare pic.twitter.com/SYWm2uBW1E— Maple Leaf Fields (@FieldsLeaf) March 5, 2024
Things haven’t publicly improved since. But Harry appeared to have made some progress in his connection with King Charles. The two met privately for tea at Clarence House in September 2025. It was their first face-to-face meeting in 19 months. William was in Cardiff that day, so Harry had no reported contact with his brother.
Harry last saw Charles in February 2024. He flew to London after learning about his father’s cancer diagnosis. He returned to Britain in July 2026 for a week of engagements. Markle, Prince Archie, and Princess Lilibet later joined him for a private family visit with Charles and Queen Camilla at Highgrove.
Royal commentator Russell Myers gave a bleak update during a 2026 episode of HELLO!’s Right Royal Podcast. “Everything I’m told about that relationship is that it couldn’t be worse,” Myers said. However, he did leave one little possibility open, saying, “Maybe there is a time in the future.”
