Prince Harry and Meghan Markle were the subject of a new book by royal author Tom Bower, according to the first part of a serialization published by The Times. A Long Excerpt of Betrayal: Power, Deceit and the Battle for the Future of the Royal Family contains detailed claims about the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s relationship with the royal family and how they have led life since leaving the Firm and moving to California.In the excerpt, Bower wrote that Queen Camilla told a friend that Meghan had “brainwashed” Harry because of changes in her behavior after the couple realized complaints about the royal family. Bower wrote: “Meghan had become a divisive agent. To please her, Harry was ignoring his old friends. He even changed his telephone number without telling his family.
“A happy-go-lucky city boy becomes obsessed with revenge.” Gradually, her character started to resemble Meghan. Emotionally, he leaned toward extremes. Simple dislike became passionate hatred. Camilla told a friend, ‘Meghan has ruined Harry’s mind.’Bower also recalled a meeting after the couple returned from their honeymoon in 2018, when the Duke and Duchess of Sussex met with Prince William and Princess Kate at Kensington Palace for what she described as peace talks, the UK Mirror reports.Bower wrote: “William’s dislike of Meghan was made clear following her warning to Harry before their engagement. ‘It’s too soon,’ William said of the pace of Harry’s relationship with the ‘American actress’. William’s suspicions of Meghan were echoed by his wife.”According to the biography, during the conversation, Meghan taunted her brother-in-law, saying, “If you don’t mind, get your finger out of my face.”The excerpt says the book details how Harry was shocked by William’s reaction to the arrest of his uncle Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, which he said heightened Harry’s concerns about his and Meghan’s royal future. It says William stood by his father King Charles and his decisions regarding Andrew, including kicking him out of the Royal Lodge and stripping him of his titles. It also said that the Prince of Wales issued a statement following Andrew’s arrest, saying that he and Princess Kate support the actions of the King, who declared that “the law must take its course”.Bower claimed that Harry became concerned that William might take drastic action if he came to the throne. The author wrote: “Correctly, Harry fears that future King William could strip all of Sussex’s titles and effectively exile him from the UK.“Whether Meghan understands the potential consequences of any deliberate disrespect to the Prince and Princess of Wales remains to be seen.”The excerpt also mentioned Harry and Meghan’s appearance in Los Angeles in January last year, when the city was being devastated by deadly wildfires. It said the couple met the victims and spent the afternoon helping by listening to people’s stories and handing out essentials at the soup kitchen. Bower wrote that the couple was ridiculed for the trip as some claimed they were taking advantage of the disaster for their own gain. Bower wrote: “After recording a video of her listening and hugging the victims, the footage was posted to Meghan’s 1.6 million Instagram followers by campaigners that day.“Instead of getting credit for her efforts, Meghan was mocked as an attention-seeking pseudo-royal.” Bower then quoted Hollywood film producer Justin Bateman, who said online at the time: “Meghan Markle and Harry are no better than ambulance chasers.“What a disgusting ‘photo op’ they got. They’re doing a ‘damage tour’? Are they politicians now? They don’t live here; they’re tourists. Disaster tourists.”Most of the pieces focused on the Invictus Games and included claims that the Duchess of Sussex had used the event for her personal gain, and that Harry and Meghan found it difficult to understand event organizers. Bower wrote: “Meghan needed a global platform for real adulation and raving fans. To her good fortune, Harry agreed she could star in the Invictus Games, which he was about to open in Canada. Just before flying to Vancouver in a private jet, she alerted her Instagram followers.“‘How should we address them?'” Canadian organizers asked. Nick Booth, chief executive of Games, replied: ‘Meghan insists on ‘ma’am’ and Harry should be called ‘sir’.’The piece also highlights alleged internal concerns, including concerns expressed by Dominic Reid, former head of the Invictus Foundation, that the sport and the contestants are being eclipsed and that the sport has turned into a “Harry and Meghan show”. It pointed to poor attendance at the program and alleged “padding” of the crowd for the benefit of the cameras, and suggested that contestants and their families were being influenced by carefully staged photo ops.With the 2027 Invictus Games taking place in Birmingham, the book claims Harry conspired to get his father, King Charles, to call the Games, saying it would dominate the media cycle and lead to a public announcement of reconciliation. However, Bower wrote that the games were probably not without opposition, making Charles’s potential attendance a huge gamble. The author wrote: “Considering all the reprehensible words and lies spoken and written by the Sussexes against the royal family since 2021, and taking into account the enormous damage done by the Sussexes’ exploitation of their royal titles, the chances of the King trotting out the Prince and Princess of Wales to appease the Sussexes in the spring of 2026 are extremely slim.”“For the king to publicly meet his son and his troublesome daughter-in-law, who are guilty of betraying the royal family, is a gamble with little upside. The feud embroiling them is far from resolved, and it remains to be seen what damage the 2027 Invictus Games will do to the already fragile family.”Within hours of the release of the first part of the episode, a spokesperson for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex released a statement condemning the allegations. The representative said: “Mr Bower’s comments have long crossed the line from criticism to fixation. This is a man who has publicly said, ‘The monarchy really depends on eliminating the Sussexes from our position of life,’ language that speaks for itself.“He has made a career out of creating ever more elaborate theories about people he doesn’t know and have never met. Those interested in the facts will look elsewhere; those looking for deranged conspiracy and melodrama know where to find them.”