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Charles, following royal tradition, served in the Royal Navy for five years. Her son, Prince Harry, had wanted to enter the military his entire life and therefore served for an entire decade. He was also determined to get involved in active service and urged the palace to let him do two different tours of Afghanistan, where he could be closer to the action.
While the palace was reluctant, Harry suggested withdrawing from the military altogether if he was not allowed to go, leaving the royal family – especially the Queen – completely torn apart.
In her 2018 book, ‘Harry: Conversations with the Prince,’ author Angela Levin explained: ‘As the Queen she was the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces and could settle an assignment, but she was also the grand- mother of a young man she wanted to protect who was desperate to fight for his country on the front lines.
At the time, Harry was third on the throne.
So the Queen and Charles decided that for “Harry’s sake, they had to try” and bring him closer to military action.
Prince Harry and King Edward VIII, The Duke of Windsor (Image: Getty)
Harry when he served in Afghanistan (Image: Getty)
Even so, his father confessed that he was worried when Harry returned home in 2008.
Charles told reporters: “As you can imagine, it’s obviously a great relief for me to see him at home in one piece.”
However, Harry isn’t the first prominent royal to get involved with the more dangerous side of the military.
King Edward VIII – later the Duke of Windsor – was excited to join the armed forces when war first broke out in 1914, even though he was Prince of Wales at the time.
He was appointed second lieutenant in the Grenadier Guards, but he was then prohibited from going overseas with the 1st battalion.
He asked Lord Kitchener, then Secretary of War, if he could serve in France.
However, the minister refused even though Edward claimed it wouldn’t matter if he died – he had four brothers to succeed him.
READ MORE: How Harry Should Avoid ‘Tragic Path of Exiled Duke’
Edward was banned from serving on the front lines to protect his life (Image: Getty)
But Lord Kitchener’s concerns lay with the fact that the future king was captured by the German army and used as a pawn, rather than his death.
King George V then insisted that Edward should be limited to staff appointments, after his heir lobbied for a role as a junior staff officer in France far behind the line. head on.
He was narrowly avoiding danger even then – a German shell hit his car and killed the driver, just as the royal had left the vehicle to inspect the troops – but nothing seemed to deter the royal from approaching the front line.
The 2017 BBC History Extra report explained: “Edward pushed the boundaries, seizing every opportunity to visit the front lines and was finally able to move to a position closer to the front.
“Assigned to the logistics staff work, Edward now had an excuse for being in dangerous places and felt it was important that he shared what ordinary soldiers were going through; he visited forward positions and came under shell fire in shelters in the front area on several occasions.
Edward would later recall, “I had the most vivid close-ups of the horrible existence that had become the plight of the British soldier.”
Writing for History Extra, Dr Heather Jones added, “Edward avoided special treatment, working long hours and living in base cantonments.”
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Edward – later the Duke of Windsor – in 1914 (L) and in 1918 (R) during active service (Image: Getty)
Harry has often said he would rather be Captain Wales than Prince Harry (Image: Getty)
She said that when he served he “was a relatively anonymous figure, in which he reveled.”
Likewise, Harry later confessed that he preferred to be called Captain Wales rather than Prince Harry.
He said in 2011: “My dad always tries to remind me of who I am and stuff like that.
“But it’s very easy to forget who I am when I’m in the military.
“Everyone wears the same uniform and does the same kind of thing. I get along well with the guys and I love my job. It really is that easy.
Earlier this year, during a prank call, Harry also confessed, “I was in the military for ten years so I’m more normal than my family would like to believe.
The Duke of Windsor’s abdication in 1936 has also been compared to Harry’s decision to leave the Royal Frontline earlier this year, although as Prince Charles’ youngest son, the Duke of Sussex did not caused by constitutional crisis unlike Edward VIII.
Harry and Meghan at LA National Cemetery last weekend (Image: Lee Morgan)
Charles said it was a great relief when Harry returned home after serving in Afghanistan (Image: Getty)
Even so, it appears both men were disappointed with royal life during their time in the military.
Dr Jones wrote: “[Edward’s] respect for much of his parents’ Victorian worldview has collapsed.
She added: “Bitter at not being allowed to fight, Edward developed a deep resentment with his role as Prince of Wales for being the cause of this ban.”
Additionally, Harry seemed to be battling restrictions on royal status long before he officially resigned.
He told author Angela Levin in 2017 that it was hard for him to be “anything other than Prince Harry”.
After Harry’s request to have a wreath laid in his name at the cenotaph last weekend – in honor of Remembrance Day – was rejected, royal watchers believe a line has been drawn in the sand between him and the rest of the royal family.
He visited Los Angeles National Cemetery with his wife Meghan Markle, for his own ceremony instead.
Likewise, the Duke of Windsor attempted to contact the royal family after his abdication, but felt he was indeed in exile for the rest of his life in France.
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