King Charles' health setback caps off a tumultuous week for the royal family
By Natalie Oliveri|
This week started like any other for the British royal family with a steady program of engagements in the King and Queen's diaries.
But the situation took an unexpected turn days later with two major developments concerning King Charles' health and his son Prince Harry's involvement with a charity that means more to him than any other.
What should have been a week of business as usual turned into a headache the royal family didn't need after finally putting the challenging 2024 behind them.
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Today came the most concerning news that King Charles had been temporarily hospitalised after experiencing "side effects" during his "scheduled and ongoing medical treatment for cancer", Buckingham Palace said.
A spokesperson moved to play down the severity of the episode, with sources indicating that the King's side effects were minor and that his ongoing recovery continues in a positive direction.
They added that the King's engagements had been postponed to protect and prioritise his continued recovery.
However, due to the monarch's age and the fact he is still battling cancer a year after his diagnosis, the statement from the palace has sparked cause for concern.
The 76-year-old's planned engagements, including today's full-day program in Birmingham, have been postponed "as a precautionary measure" and "acting on medical advice".
And there remains the possibility of further changes to the King's schedule next week, including a state visit to Italy the week after next, however at this stage the tour is still going ahead.
It's certainly not been the week the royal family had been anticipating.
The ominous sign of things to come began with a statement from Buckingham Palace on Monday that an historic meeting with Pope Francis at the Vatican had been "postponed by mutual agreement" based on "medical advice" from the Pontiff's doctors.
The 88-year old was discharged from hospital at the weekend following a five-week stay while he was suffering from double pneumonia.
"Their Majesties send the Pope their best wishes for his convalescence and look forward to visiting him in the Holy See, once he has recovered," the palace said.
King Charles' visit to the Vatican was also set to be a "historic first", becoming the first monarch and Supreme Governor of the Church of England to visit the Papal Basilica of St Paul's Outside the Walls since the Reformation.
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On Wednesday, Prince Harry was in the headlines again for all the wrong reasons.
The Duke of Sussex issued an extraordinary statement confirming he had resigned as patron from his most beloved charity, Sentebale, which he had co-founded in memory of his late mother Diana nearly 20 years ago.
Few causes have mattered more to Harry than this one. During a visit to southern Africa in October last year in support of Sentebale, Harry told reporters he was "committed for the rest of my life".
"You'll be surprised," he said. "Come back to this place in 25 years, you'll see a massive difference... As far as I'm concerned, I'm committed for the rest of my life."
He and Sentebale's co-founder Prince Seeiso of Lesotho issued a deeply personal joint statement which, in part, read: "What's transpired is unthinkable. We are in shock that we have to do this."
They said it was "truly heartbreaking".
Their decision, they said, was made "with heavy hearts", describing it as "devastating".
The two princes quit their own charity in solidarity with the trustees after losing faith in the chair of the board, Dr Sophie Chandauka who later made accusations of "abuse of power, bullying, harassment, misogyny".
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She appeared to take particular aim at Prince Harry, accusing him of "playing the victim card" and using "the very press they disdain to harm people".
Prince Harry spent a gap year in Lesotho in 2004 and created the charity in 2006 to help orphaned children affected by extreme poverty and HIV/AIDS in Lesotho, Botswana and Malawi.
Harry and Seeiso had both lost their mothers and saw Sentebale as a way to help other children who had experienced loss at a young age.
Sentebale is a Sesotho word for "forget-me-not", which also happened to be Princess Diana's favourite flower.
Prince Harry also saw southern Africa, and Lesotho, as a sanctuary from palace life and a way to escape his own traumatic childhood, giving him a focus away from his former partying days.
He has always had an affinity with children and his visits to the region guaranteed heart-warming photos of the prince hugging the youngsters and playing games with them.
They were some of Prince Harry's best moments.
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Dr Kelello Lerotholi, one of the trustees who recently quit alongside Seeiso and Harry, said he was "worried about the emotional wellbeing of both princes" in light of this week's events.
"I think given their commitment to the welfare of kids, they are torn apart at the thought of looking like they're abandoning them when they know that they're not abandoning them," he said, according to The Times.
Sentebale was even chosen by the prince as his first public appearance since stepping back as a working member of the royal family with wife Meghan in 2020.
At an event in London, Harry told the audience: "What I want to make clear is we're not walking away, and we certainly aren't walking away from you".
He moved to reassure the charity that his commitment "will never falter", adding he would "continue the work to make real long-lasting impact for all those that have been left vulnerable".
One of Prince Harry's regular appearances post-working royal life is at a charity polo match alongside his Argentinian polo-playing friend Nacho Figueras, which raises money for Sentebale.
The next one was set to be held in Argentina in November but that event is likely to be cancelled.
Royal photographer Chris Jackson has spoken of Harry's connection to Africa and Sentebale in the past, having accompanied him on many visits there through the years.
Jackson said he'd seen "on numerous occasions, first hand, how important this deep and unique relationship is for the charity, hard working staff and most importantly the young people of Lesotho".
Speaking to 9Honey in 2018, ahead of Prince Harry and Meghan's first and only visit to Sydney, Jackson touched on the importance of Sentebale to the Duke of Sussex.
"When I go to Lesotho [in Africa], I know the children in the orphanages I've been seeing for the last 10 years and you watch them grow up," Jackson told 9Honey.
"That's one of the greatest privileges of the job that you get to go back to these places over the years – it's just amazing."
It's a sad end for Prince Harry and the charity and children, he loved so much in the same week as his father's health setback.
King Charles returned to Clarence House, his London residence on Thursday after spending a short time in hospital.
Palace aides said the brief hospital stay was a "most minor bump in a road that's very much heading in the right direction".
Much like last year when she was tasked with keeping the show on the road while the King was out of action, Queen Camilla carried on with business as usual with an event on the set of a police drama.
However the development would no doubt be worrying for the royal family, with the King even thanking medical staff for helping him and the Princess of Wales through "the uncertainties and anxieties of illness", in his Christmas address.
It's a feeling the King would know all too well, especially now he's had a reminder of just how unpredictable ill health can be.
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