The Duke of York, who served in the 10-week Falklands War in 1982, is said to have still tried to use his royal status to his advantage during his time in the Navy. The Duke of Sussex, on the other hand, who served a total of 30 weeks in Afghanistan during two separate deployments, desperately tried to integrate and become “one of the boys”. Pod Save the Queen is hosted by Ann Gripper and features Daily Mirror royal editor Russell Myers.
Last month, Ms Gripper interviewed Nigel Cawthorne, the author of the recently-released ‘Prince Andrew: Epstein and the Palace’.
They discussed Andrew’s life from childhood, through his military career, his marriage to Sarah Ferguson and his latest scandal around his friendship with convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.
Ms Gripper said: “The impression I was getting was very much that [Andrew] was still using his difference when he was in the military, whereas Harry found it a place where he could be one of the boys and lose himself in it.”
Mr Cawthorne replied: “That’s true. I mean, a lot of people ‒ because [Andrew’s] older brother had been in the Navy ‒ compared him to Charles and found Charles a much humbler character to get on with, and more one of the boys.”
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Prince Andrew served in the Navy and Prince Harry served in the Army (Image: GETTY)
Prince Andrew with other members of the crew on board HMS Invincible after returning from Falklands (Image: GETTY)
Andrew and Harry have often been compared because they are both the second son, who are unlikely to ever be King.
This means they may have struggled with their role, which can be hard to define as a ‘spare’ rather than the ‘heir’.
However, they appear to have come out of these somewhat difficult experiences with very different outlooks, with Andrew often gaining himself a reputation for being arrogant, while Harry gave off a sense that he would rather be a normal person.
Indeed, Ms Gripper recalled reading one particular anecdote from when Andrew was in the military that seemed to really demonstrate how he was still trying to use his status to get special treatment.
Prince Andrew in his Navy uniform (Image: GETTY)
She said: “I quite enjoyed hearing that the military can put people in their place quite nicely, or at least attempt to.
“So arriving for his first tour on an aircraft carrier, and introducing himself to the Captain and saying: ‘Hi, I’m Andrew, but you can call me Andrew.’
“And the Captain managing to reply, ‘You can call me Sir.’”
Mr Cawthorne added that Andew’s colleagues in the military found him “rather arrogant” but added that “he did put his life on the line, so one must give him credit for that”.
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Prince Harry on tour in Afghanistan (Image: GETTY)
Prince Harry was “one of the boys” in the armed forces (Image: GETTY)
Prince Harry, meanwhile, who was known as Captain Wales in the Army, is said to miss the “camaraderie” of life in the military.
He has previously said it was the happiest time of his life, adding that military life was as “normal as it’s going to get”.
He insisted: “I’m one of the guys. I don’t get treated any differently.”
Harry left the Army in 2015 after a 10-year career, but the forces remained close to his heart and he threw himself into the Invictus Games, a huge sporting event he created for injured veterans.
He was also given a number of titles including the Captain General of the Royal Marines and Honorary Air Commandant of RAF Honington.
When he and his wife Meghan Markle stepped down as senior royals at the end of March this year, Harry had to give up his military appointments, which was reportedly a huge disappointment.
A source told The Daily Telegraph: “Harry has told friends he is really missing the Army as well as his military appointments. He misses the camaraderie of being in the forces.
“He has been telling friends he still can’t believe this has happened. He can’t believe his life has been turned upside down.
Prince Harry in the Army (Image: GETTY)
“He was in a happy place when he was serving in the Army, then he met Meghan and since then life has been great.
“But I don’t think he foraw things turning quite as they did.”
He reportedly also feels he would have been “better protected” from the turmoil of the last few months if he was still in the Army.
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