The Prince of Wales has been issued a warning by a historian over his rift with his brother Harry.

Prince William has been issued a warning about his brother by a royal historian (Image: Matthew Horwood/Getty Images)
Prince William has seen his responsibilities increase since he became The Prince of Wales in 2022, and in the years to come, this will increase once again. While he is not yet King, when William does take to the throne, he will have a number of challenges to face.

One of these is expected to be the declining support towards the monarchy, something that is especially prevalent in younger generations. While William, 43, is one of the most popular members of the Royal Family, and therefore is set to make a very successful King, one historian believes that the estrangement between William and his brother Prince Harry could cause problems. This is because the monarchy is supposed to represent stability, and the rift between William and Harry could actually act as a disadvantage for William when he wears the Crown.

Writing in The i Paper, historian and writer Tessa Dunlop said: “At its best the Royal Family is the nation’s symbolic repository in an increasingly divided world. The late Queen Elizabeth II has always been the obvious model for William’s future reign: a unifying figure, a point of stability across the generations, and crucially a monarch who comes to the throne without the baggage of his father.

“Yet any hopes of that will be dashed if he cannot bring himself to offer Harry a rapprochement. Forgiveness, after all, is an essential prerequisite for a future defender of the faith.”

Talking about the decline of support towards the monarchy, Tessa wrote: “To have any chance of halting the Royal Family’s decline, “Willy” needs to set aside his differences and offer “Harold” an olive branch.

“Siblings can be hugely triggering, and the peace offering would no doubt cause William great pain. But the gains would be enormous.”

William and Harry are not believed to be on talking terms (Image: YUI MOK/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

She continued: “To welcome the Duke of Sussex back into the fold would set William apart as the redemptive Prince, a man well equipped to broaden monarchy’s appeal for the next generation. What a pity the prospect is just a pipe dream.”

While William and Harry, 41, were believed to have been close growing up, their relationship began to show strains after Harry quit royal life in 2020.

This then worsened as a result of Harry’s various accusations about royal life in the 2021 Oprah Winfrey interview, followed by the 2022 Netflix docuseries Harry and Meghan, and Harry’s memoir Spare in 2023.

It is believed Harry and William are not on talking terms, with Harry having mentioned how he would like to reconcile with his brother multiple times.