Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s interview with Oprah Winfrey had several consequences, which after weeks the British media continue to analyze.
In addition to racism, press harassment and personal conflicts, another point that caught the attention of the TV special was the statements of the Duke of Sussex about his father and brother, and the fact that both are “trapped” within the Royal Family.
“I was trapped myself. I didn’t see a way out. I was trapped but didn’t know I was trapped “Harry started saying.
Given this, Winfrey asked him to explain that more and he replied that he felt he was a prisoner of the “system” and that William and Carlos had no escape, compared to him.
“My father and my brother are trapped, but they cannot leave. And I have great compassion for that “the prince concluded.
But is Harry right? How can two people as powerful as Carlos and William be “trapped”? Why did the prince feel this way prior to his resignation?
Robert Hazell, a constitutional expert at University College London, answered these questions in conversation with Vanity Fair, and assures that Harry was absolutely right about what he called “the golden cage” in which the royals.
“Harry was right when he described the other members of the Royal Family as trapped. They are trapped in a system that allows them very, very little freedom. “Hazell started saying.
The British legal expert pointed out that “in essence” the problem is that “all monarchies depend on hereditary succession”, and that Prince Harry is a good example of how the system works.
Hazell recalled that when the Duke of Sussex was born, he was much closer in the line of succession, but at the same time was considered the “spare” if something happened to William, the first-born of the heir.
“As the heir grew older, married, and had children of his own, Harry’s place descended in the line of succession and was no longer necessary. Then it became redundant, and that is a familiar problem for members of the lesser royalty in all other countries, “he explained.
“It’s a genuine problem because they, when they were younger, had to potentially train to become monarchs, so they are not qualified to do anything else in what you or I might call normal life.”added.
Freedoms
The also co-editor of The role of the monarchy in modern democracy He referred to the lack of freedoms that members of the Royal Family have, despite having a life full of luxury.
Along these lines, the academic gave an example to Meghan Markle, who prior to her life in the monarchy “was a successful actress who had her own career, had her own voice and, as she said in Winfrey’s interview, joined this marriage possibly quite naively, thinking that she could maintain an independent voice ”.
“The freedoms that you and I take for granted, royalty doesn’t have. They have no freedom of expression, they have almost no privacy or free choice of career. There are other minor restrictions: the British Royal Family and Scandinavian royalty have no freedom of religion. They have to be Protestants “he commented.
Robert added that those born into the Royal Family “They grow up in a golden cage” and “They don’t know a different life” until they are older and understand the reasons that keep them in that cage.
“Queen Elizabeth II is a very intelligent woman and, as everyone who knows her privately says, a very resourceful person. But in public, in his scripted speeches, he has never said anything interesting or funny because, in reality, he has no freedom of expression, “he stressed.
The expert recalled that Prince Charles has suffered from bad press for most of his life, but that he has not been able to categorically reject media harassment because “Feels that it is necessary to live with it” and that “Goes with work”.
But it is precisely this that Harry refused to accept and that led him and Meghan Markle to step aside, in order to live a calmer life with their son Archie and the baby on the way.
Finally, on whether the conflict between the Sussexes and the Royal Family is an existential threat to the institution, Hazell assures that it is not and that this crisis is quite similar to what happened with Princess Diana in the 90s. “Most families have someone who’s divorced, or someone who doesn’t talk to their brother or their mother or whatever, and it’s part of family life.”, he sentenced.
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