Prince Harry's secret move branded a 'painful' reminder for Royal Family

A secret move by Prince Harryhas been branded a "painful" reminder for the Royal Family. The 40-year-old, who stepped down from royal duties in 2020, arranged for a secret letter to be placed at a war memorial to mark VJ Day.

According to a royal expert, this is likely to be a "gut punch" for the royals, especially King Charles and Prince William. It emerged last week that the former working royal had paid a poignant tribute to his grandfather, the late Prince Philip,in the letter secretly left at the National Memorial Arboretum on the 80th anniversary of VJ Day. It has been said that Harry, who now lives in California, asked a friend to discreetly leave the note and a wreath of red poppies at the Burma Star Memorial following the national commemorations attended by the King, 76, and Queen Camilla, 78.

Speaking to the Mirror, royal expert and historian Dr Tessa Dunlop revealed that the letter - which was left after the King and Queen left, left a "gaping hole" in the Firm.

She said: "Last week's VJ Day anniversary was heavy with emotion; a sombre recall of the cost of conflict 80 years after the end of the Pacific War beneath the leafy calm of Staffordshire's National Memorial Arboretum.

"Thirty-three veterans made the journey and were honoured by King Charles, who assured them they would never be forgotten.

"A perfect day, but one without mention of his forgotten son, Prince Harry, once the Royal Family's most effective military figurehead."

She added: "Having first laid a wreath at the Cenotaph in 2009, it was a painful reminder of the cost of what he had left behind when in 2020, he was forbidden from continuing the practice...

"One more gut-punch for the estranged Duke, whose long letter honouring the Pacific War veterans was a quiet reminder that Harry has not forgotten the most important role he was forced to abandon when he left the Royal Family, even if his family appears to have forgotten him."

Harry announced his plans, alongside his wife, Meghan Markle, to step down from royal duties in early 2020. The pair now reside in Montecito with their two children, Archie and Lilibet.