The Duke of Sussex felt protective over his relationship and felt the need to “confront” those who cast doubt over his then-girlfriend, according to royal authors Omid Scobie and Carolyn Durand. The authors, who released a bombshell biography about the Sussexes earlier this year, claimed he particularly worried about “the ugliness of racism…both unconscious and intentional”.
They wrote in Finding Freedom: “When he first started seeing her, Harry, sensitive to even the slightest hint of prejudice, had fallouts within his own circle.
“When some questioned his new relationship, and whether she was suitable, he would wonder, ‘Is this about race? Is it snobbery?’
“An old friend of Harry’s spent an afternoon gossiping about Meghan, making disparaging remarks about her Hollywood background.
“Word got back to Harry, and the prince immediately cut him off.
“If he was willing to confront those close to him, when it came to the media, Harry was poised for outright war.”
The Duke even opposed his brother, Prince William, when the latter suggested he should take things slow with his new partner.
According to the royal experts’ book, William said: “‘Don’t feel you need to rush this’.
“‘Take as much time as you need to get to know this girl.’”
But the Duke of Cambridge’s words of advice did not go down well with Harry, who according to the authors, found the choice of the words “this girl” to be condescending.
The book read: “In those last two words, ‘this girl’, Harry heard the tone of snobbishness that was anathema to his approach to the world.
“During his ten-year career in the military, outside the Royal bubble, he had learnt not to make snap judgments about people based on their accent, education, ethnicity, class or profession.”
It added: “At the same time William has always felt he needs to look out for Harry, not as a future Monarch but as an older brother.
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“Their whole adult lives he’s felt he should keep an eye on Harry and make sure he’s not in trouble and on a good path.”
But, to Harry, William’s concern suggested he saw him as “immature”, according to the book which is being serialised by The Times and day Times.
The book claimed: “William may have felt he was acting out of concern, but Harry was offended that his older brother still treated him as if he were immature.”
An excerpt seen by Entertainment Tonight revealed that the couple began exchanging the words “I love you” three months into their relationship.
