The Sussexes and the Royal Family: a relationship that was never going to work
Video report by ITV News Royal Editor Chris Ship
Harry and Meghan did not contribute to the new book, Finding Freedom, but it was done with their knowledge and with the support of their friends.
So it gives us the best inside account so far of what was happening in the Royal Family in the 18 months between Meghan marrying into it and she and Harry deciding to leave it.
It is, however, an account from their perspective so it should be read with that in mind.
But this book does put on paper what we have known for some time: that Harry and Meghan were deeply unhappy in the Royal Family, that they were frustrated by the people and characters within the Palace, they believed they were constrained by the hierarchy of the institution, they felt neither supported nor appreciated for what they did, and they concluded they weren’t granted the kind of freedom to operate which they felt they deserved.
We are spared the ugly details which underpin all those disagreements and we are unlikely to get those until a time when the Queen is no longer with us.
Four months after they left the Royal Family, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have the new life in Los Angeles they wanted but it was not achieved without putting huge strains on Harry’s relationship with his family.
In fact, he now barely talks to them at all.
Prince Harry’s focus for the immediate future is on Archie, on Meghan and on finding a way to use the enormous platform they have to make a difference to people and to causes closest to their hearts.
Do not expect to see Harry back in the UK very often, if at all.
The Sussexes believe the establishment, the institution, the people their friends called the “vipers” did not support them against the tidal wave of negative press coverage to which they were subjected.
The Royal Family, on the contrary, believes it did what it could for the couple. It gave them the resources they wanted plus their own Household and staff but many palace aides believe the couple neither appreciated the help nor did they acknowledge the complexities of institution in which they were operating.
In short, the two sides were like a mismatched couple going into a marriage which was destined for failure.
Buckingham Palace has not commented on the claims and a spokesperson for the Sussexes says Harry and Meghan were “not interviewed”.
Finding Freedom scratches the surface of the dispute which led to Harry and Meghan’s departure.
Deep wounds have been left in their wake and they will take a long time - if ever - to heal.