Prince William and Prince Harry’s relationship has been a topic of much contention in recent years, and while the pair will always be brothers their alleged “different roles” in the Royal Family caused a major rift between them following Harry’s wedding to Meghan Markle, ultimately ending in the Duke of Sussex’s decision to step down as a senior royal.
Now in a new book Battle of Brothers: William and Harry — the Friendship and the Feuds, biographer Robert Lacey will “address the unique and complex relationship at the heart of the royal family’s recent woes,” according to a press release, per People. Set to be released in October, the book will also put the two brother’s relationship into a historical context, examining how the “heir” and the “spare” dynamic has played out throughout history.
“Much reported on but little understood, Diana’s boys have lived under constant scrutiny since birth. Raised to be the closest of brothers, the last 18 months has seen a devastating breakdown of their once unbreakable bond,” reads the book’s synopsis. “With an unrivalled knowledge of court life and access to impeccable sources, Robert Lacey investigates the untold reality of the brothers’ relationship, explaining what happened when two sons were raised for vastly different futures and showing how the seeds of damage were sown as their parents’ marriage unravelled.”
According to reports, the book will also address how the brothers’ relationship has been impacted by their wives Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle, as well as the reason Harry and Meghan decided to step back from the royal family and move to Los Angeles with their son Archie.
“I have been astonished and sometimes moved to tears by the fresh details and insights I have discovered in researching this story of family conflict. It has been both enthralling and painful to trace this drama through the memories of close witnesses and some of the people most intimately involved,” author Lacey said in a press release.
“These two brothers — once inseparable and now separated by much more than mere distance — have been acting out the contradictions that go back into their childhoods and even before that: into their parents’ ill-fated marriage,” he continued. “We have seen conflicts between heir and spare in every recent generation of the royal family — but nothing so profound as this.”
While the brothers have never publicly spoken about their rift, Harry did allude to their growing apart in ITV documentary Harry & Meghan: An African Journey.
