King Charles delivered a powerful tribute to his son Prince William during a lavish state banquet at Windsor Castle on Tuesday — but the monarch’s rare speech made no mention of his estranged son, Prince Harry.
The king, 76, made a formal address to the Prince and Princess of Wales as he and Queen Camilla welcomed French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife, Brigitte Macron.
During the dinner, which was attended by more than 150 guests, King Charles stood up from his seat and read aloud a poignant speech that featured candor, laughs and a warm reference to William and Catherine’s family.
Charles praised his elder son’s decision to establish his family home at Windsor — saying the move is doubly special given the castle’s Norman origins.
“The castle in which we meet this evening was begun by my ancestor — and your sometime countryman — William, Duke of Normandy, in the year 1070,” Charles said. “It remains the oldest and largest occupied castle in the world.”
“So it is perhaps rather appropriate that my son, the Prince of Wales, who shares that earlier William’s name, has made Windsor his home with his family, like so many of our predecessors,” the king added.
During his touching speech, Charles also celebrated the deep friendship between Great Britain and France.
However, the speech notably didn’t mention his younger son, Prince Harry, who quit royal life with his wife, Meghan Markle, in 2020 and moved to Montecito, California.
It may come as no surprise that Charles chose to forgo mentioning the Duke of Sussex, given that their two camps have been locked in a bitter feud for years.
The “Spare” author, 40, recently told the BBC that he would “love a reconciliation” with his cancer-stricken father, though he claimed the king “won’t speak” to him.
“There’s no point continuing to fight anymore, life is precious,” the Invictus Games founder said, adding that he has since “forgiven” them for their many “disagreements.”
William, for his part, made Adelaide Cottage in Windsor Great Park his family’s main royal residence in 2022.
He and Princess Catherine, as well as their three children, Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis, primarily reside at the sprawling property, though they do still frequently visit their London home.
The family previously resided at Apartment 1A in Kensington Palace, where Princess Margaret had lived with Antony Armstrong-Jones following their wedding in 1960.
Adelaide Cottage, which is located on the grounds of Windsor Castle, sits close to Lambrook School in Berkshire, England, where the three Wales children currently study.
