The breakdown between the Duke and Duchess of Sussex and the royal family writ large is well documented.
Following Meghan and Harry's controversial interview with Oprah Winfrey, tensions have remained high between the Duke, and his father, Charles.
In fact, a recent report has alleged that the Prince of Wales will not be allowing the Sussex children to have royal titles when he becomes king — in what may be another blow to the already ostracised couple.
In light of this development, we take a look back at Prince Harry and his father's strained relationship — as well as the pivotal moments that led to this juncture.
2017 — Harry interviews Charles
Back in 2017, Harry interviewed his father, in one of their best-known moments of public affection.
Discussing Charles' passion for the environment on BBC Radio 4, Harry revealed that the two men would talk for "hours and hours" about it, to which Charles replied: "You know, dear boy, if I may say so, the fact that you’re saying this gives me enormous optimism."
The royals also revealed their nicknames for each other, with Harry referring to Charles as "Pa", and the Prince of Wales addressing his son as "dear boy".
2017 —Harry and William open up about their mother's death
In the BBC documentary, Diana, 7 Days, brothers William and Harry opened up about the death of their mother Princess Diana — and touched on Charles' response.
Harry said that his father had attempted to protect them, saying: "He was the one of the two left. He tried to do his best and to make sure that we were protected and looked after but he was going through the same grieving process as well."
2018 — Harry celebrates Charles' 70th birthday
Shortly after his wedding to Meghan Markle — during which Charles stepped walked the former actress down the aisle — the royals celebrated the Prince of Wales' 70th birthday, where Harry delivered a speech.
"It is your selfless drive to affect change, whether that is to improve the lives of those who are on the wrong path, to save an important piece of our national heritage or to protect a particular species under threat, which William and I draw inspiration from every day," the Duke of Sussex said.
"So, Pa, while I know that you've asked that today not be about you, you must forgive me if I don’t listen to you – much like when I was younger – and instead, I ask everyone here to say a huge thank you to you, for your incredible work over nearly 50 years."
He added that many of his and William's interests derived from his father's work.
2021 — Meghan and Harry's explosive Oprah interview
It's apparent that tensions started growing between Harry and Charles towards the end of 2019, when the duke started considering stepping back from his role as a senior royal.
He and Meghan took their young song, Archie, to Canada, where they reportedly began to formulate a plan for a scaled-back role.
This year, the couple revealed in their March 2021 interview with talk show host, Oprah Winfrey, was the source of much chagrin for Charles. Harry alleged that Charles went so far as to cut off their finances.
"My family literally cut me off financially, and I had to afford . . . afford security for us," he claimed. Harry said Princess Diana left him money, which he used to pay for security.
The Duke also claimed Charles "stopped taking my calls" during Megxit — which was a particularly tough period in the father-son relationship.
"I had three conversations with my grandmother and two conversations with my father before he stopped taking my calls. And then he said, can you put this all in writing?"
When Winfrey asked why his father had stopped taking his calls, he replied: "By that point, I took matters into my own hands, it was like, I needed to do this for my family. This is not a surprise to anybody. It’s really sad that it’s got to this point, but I’ve got to do something for my own mental health, my wife’s and for Archie’s as well."
He said that they are now in communication, but that there's "a lot of hurt that's happened" and that they have "lots to work through."
"I feel really let down. He’s been through something similar, he knows what pain feels like," Harry added.
2021 — Talks between Harry and Charles said to have been "unproductive"
Following the couple's interview, a source revealed that Harry's revelations created "friction" with Charles and William, in particular, and that talks between the three men were "unproductive".
"Well, I did actually call them to see how they are feeling, it's true, Harry has talked to his brother and his father, too," Meghan's friend, Gayle King, told CBS. "The word I was given was, those conversations were not productive. But they are glad they at least started a conversation.
"I think what is still upsetting to them is that the palace keeps saying they want to work it out privately and yet they believe these false stories are coming out that are very disparaging against Meghan still. No one in the royal family has talked to Meghan yet," she added.
She went on: "And I think it's frustrating for them to see that it's a racial conversation about the royal family when all they wanted all along was for the Royals to intervene and tell the Press to stop with the unfair, inaccurate, false stories that definitely have a racial slant.
"And until you can acknowledge that, I think it's going to be hard to move forward. But they both want to move forward with this and they both want healing in this family. At the end of the day, that is Harry's family."
2021 — Harry attends the funeral of Prince Philip
After Harry returned from America for the funeral of his grandfather, royal commentators saw it as an opportunity for the pair to repair their relationship.
Per The Sun, Harry reunited with Charles and William for two hours after the funeral, meeting with them for the first time since the Winfrey interview aired — and, indeed, since they left for the US in 2020.
A source told the publication: "It’s early days but you’d hope this is exactly the first step Philip would have wished for," while another corroborated, "It is not known what was said behind closed doors and when the cameras were turned off, but it’s unfathomable to think Megxit and Oprah did not come up. Harry and William appeared cordial as the cameras rolled and that seemed to pave the way for Charles to join them when everyone had left."
2021 — Harry opens up in his mental health series with Oprah
In his new mental health docuseries with Oprah, The Me You Can't See, which aired in May, Harry revealed that his father used to tell him and Prince William that the "cycle" would never end.
"It’s incredibly triggering to potentially lose another woman in my life," he said, referring to his mother, the Princess of Wales, and Meghan.
"The list is growing. And it all comes back to the same people, the same business model, the same industry," he said. "Because my father used to say to me when I was younger, he used to say to both William and I, 'Well it was like that for me so it’s gonna be like that for you.'"
This is a mindset that does not resonate with the prince, who fired back: "[It] doesn’t make sense. Just because you suffered, that doesn’t mean that your kids have to suffer. In fact, quite the opposite. If you’ve suffered, do whatever you can to make sure that whatever experiences, negative experiences you had, that you can make it right for your kids."
Later in the interview, he added: "I wasn’t in an environment [in the Royal Family] where it was encouraged to not talk about it, either. That was sort of squashed."
2021 — Harry speaks to Dax Shepard
During his appearance on Dax Shepard's podcast, Armchair Expert, Harry said that "there is no blame" when it comes to his relationship with his father.
"I've experienced pain or suffering, because of the pain or suffering that perhaps my parents or father suffered. I don’t think we should be pointing the finger or blaming anybody, but certainly when it comes to parenting, if I’ve experienced some form of pain or suffering because of the pain or suffering that perhaps my father or my parents had suffered, I’m going to make sure I break that cycle so that I don’t pass it on, basically," he told the actor.
Harry went onto cite Charles' schooling, and the way he was raised by the Queen and Prince Philip. "I also know that is connected to his parents, so that means he’s treated me the way he was treated – so how can I change that for my own kids?"
"It's a lot of genetic pain and suffering that gets passed on anyway, so we as parents should be doing the most we can to try and say, 'You know what, that happened to me, I'm going to make sure that doesn't happen to you," he continued.
2021 — Charles remains silent
When questioned over his son's comments to Dax Shepard last week, the Prince of Wales remained tight-lipped.
Per Woman and Home, Charles' ex-butler, Grant Harrold said that he is "feeling wretched" in light of his son's recent claims.
"The damage is done," Harrold reportedly said. "And that makes me sad because the relationship that I knew which was a loving, caring, fun relationship can never be like that again."
2021 — Charles reportedly won't allow Archie to become a prince
According to a new report published on the 19th of June, per Daily Mail, Prince Charles has made it clear to Harry and Meghan that their children will not receive royal titles when he becomes king.
A source close to the couple alleged that the Prince of Wales intends to change legal documents to ensure that Archie and Lilibet will not be granted royal titles. This is apparently part of Charles' longstanding plan to slim down the monarchy — which he believes the public wants.
"Harry and Meghan were told Archie would never be a Prince, even when Charles became King," an insider said, per the publication.
