Prince Harry Took Private Swipe at Palace Days Before Coronation Invite

Prince Harry accused the royal family of covering up phone hacking days before referring to his daughter publicly as a princess for the first time.

The Duke of Sussex's chaotic relationship with King Charles III's monarchy played out in real-time during the two weeks after he put his latest accusations in writing to the High Court in London. Harry's accusation that "the institution" did a deal with Rupert Murdoch's media empire to not sue for phone hacking only became public on March 28 but was signed weeks earlier.

The timeline means Harry knew there was a chance his latest broadside against the palace would become public knowledge even as his office announced that Charles had invited him to the coronation and when revealing his children had royal titles.

And that speaks to the confusion some have pointed to around Prince Harry's attitude to the monarchy, which he frequently criticizes yet still says he believes in.

February 24: Prince Harry's accusation of a royal cover-up

Prince Harry is suing Associated Newspapers, publisher of the Daily Mail and The Mail on Sunday, for wiretapping, phone hacking and other illegal practices but the allegations are technically too old under British law.

He, therefore, needs to persuade the court that he could not have known he was a victim until some point within the last six years if the case is going to proceed to trial.

On February 24, Harry signed a witness statement arguing he could not have known he may have been targeted by the Mail titles because the palace withheld from him information about phone hacking at the News of the World, published by Rupert Murdoch's News Group Newspapers [NGN].

Harry wrote: "There was in place an agreement between the Institution and NGN that we would not engage, or even discuss, the possibility of bringing claims against NGN until the litigation against it relating to phone hacking was over.

"The Institution made it clear that we did not need to know anything about phone hacking and it was made clear to me that the Royal Family did not sit in the witness box because that could open up a can of worms.

"The Institution was without a doubt withholding information from me for a long time about NGN's phone hacking and that has only become clear in recent years
as I have pursued my own claim with different legal advice and representation."

The document, seen by Newsweek, was only released by the High Court in London on March 28, during the second day of a four-day hearing on an application by Associated to have the case thrown out.

However, the days after it was signed included a series of dramatic revelations in the world of royal reporting.

Harry and Meghan confirm home eviction

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle were asked to vacate their home in England, Frogmore Cottage, in January but the move did not emerge in the U.K. press until an article in The Sun on February 28.

On March 1, Harry and Meghan confirmed the story in a statement from their spokesperson: "The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have been requested to vacate their residence at Frogmore Cottage."

March 3: Harry and Meghan's daughter christened as a princess

Two days later the couple christened their daughter, Lilibet, as a princess in a private ceremony at their Montecito home in front of friends including Tyler Perry.

Reverend John Taylor, the bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles, conducted the ceremony. People magazine reported royal family members were invited but did not attend.

March 5: Harry and Meghan reveal coronation invite

King Charles' office invited Harry and Meghan to the coronation at some point during this period, the couple's spokesperson confirmed on March 5.

A statement read: "I can confirm the duke has recently received email correspondence from his majesty's office regarding the coronation. An immediate decision on whether the duke and duchess will attend will not be disclosed by us at this time."

March 8: Princess Lilibet's title becomes public

Princess Lilibet's royal title became public knowledge after news of her christening leaked to People on March 8.

A statement from their spokesperson released to Newsweek said: "I can confirm that Princess Lilibet Diana was christened on Friday, March 3."

A debate quickly flared in the U.K. media over when the titles had been granted and why the couple was choosing to use them despite sweeping criticisms of the monarchy in Harry's book Spare, their Netflix documentary Harry & Meghan and their interview with Oprah Winfrey in 2021.

On March 9, they issued a follow-up statement: "The children's titles have been a birthright since their grandfather became Monarch. This matter has been settled for some time in alignment with Buckingham Palace."

March 28: Prince Harry's new swipe at palace becomes public

Prince Harry's lawsuit against the Mail on the face of it has little to do with the palace or even the Murdoch empire.

The duke could have left his allegations against "the Institution" out and would still have had other arguments available to him to justify not having been aware of the possibility the Mail may have targeted him illegally.

For example, Harry's witness statement also says: "In particular, from 2005 to 2015, when I was in the British Army, I was extremely busy and worked long hours and I did not have time to regularly read newspapers or watch television."

"I did not closely follow the Leveson Inquiry at the time and I cannot recall reading any reports about it," he wrote. "I do however remember [former Daily Mail editor] Paul Dacre clearly stating that phone hacking had not taken place at Associated."

The fact he chose to include an allegation of a cover-up at the palace relating to a newspaper group not included in this case shows the duke has chosen to prioritize the strength of his lawsuit above any hopes of putting the royal rift behind him.

The decision is an interesting one in light of remarks Harry made about the Royal Family in January while publicizing his book Spare.

ITV journalist Tom Bradby asked whether he still believed in the monarchy and Harry replied "yes," before answering "I don't know" when asked whether he would play any role in its future.

And when Anderson Cooper on 60 Minutes asked whether Harry still speaks to Prince William: "Currently, no. But I look forward to us being able to find peace."

Some may struggle to marry Harry's expressed desire to "find peace" with his inclusion of new allegations against the palace less than two months later.

Jack Royston is chief royal correspondent for Newsweek, based in London. You can find him on Twitter at @jack_royston and read his stories on Newsweek's The Royals Facebook page.

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