Queen Elizabeth Wanted Prince Harry To 'Patch Things Up' With Royal Family: Historian

Queen Elizabeth never stopped hoping that Prince Harry would mend fences with the royal family and return to the family circle, a royal historian has suggested.

Historian Robert Hardman shared in an interview with People what he believes were the Queen's wishes for her grandson Prince Harry and the royal family before she passed away on Sept. 8.

The "Queen of Our Times: The Life of Elizabeth II" author said he believes the late monarch would have wanted the Duke of Sussex to repair his strained relationship with his father, King Charles III, and older brother, Prince William.

"The Queen adored Harry right to the end, and Harry adored her," Hardman told the outlet of the special bond Prince Harry and his grandmother shared. "I think she was one of the conduits between Windsor and California, and it would have been one of her dearest wishes that they patch things up."

Prince Harry became estranged from his father and older brother after he and his wife Meghan Markle stepped back from their royal roles and moved to California in 2020. Tensions between the Sussexes and the royal family reportedly worsened after the couple gave interviews in which they discussed the difficulties they faced within the monarchy.

Prince Harry, 38, and Markle, 41, had been in Europe for a series of charity engagements when Queen Elizabeth II "peacefully" died at the age of 96 at Balmoral Castle in Scotland on Sept. 8.

The late monarch's death reunited the Duke of Sussex with Prince William, who reportedly invited his younger brother and sister-in-law to join him and wife Kate Middleton in greeting mourners who had gathered outside Windsor Castle to pay their respects on Sept. 10.

Prince Harry and Markle remained in the U.K. for the Queen's funerary events for the following two weeks and flew back home to California shortly after the funeral.

Those close to King Charles and Queen Consort Camilla reportedly hope that Prince Harry and Prince William would reconcile for the sake of their father's reign.

"You'd think that all members of the family would unite and support the King, especially," an unnamed source close to King Charles told People. "Perhaps some wounds can be healed in the process."

It would likely have been the Queen's dying wish, according to the insider, who added: "She knew that conflicts were a part of life, and she didn't hold grudges. Most of all, she wanted to see her family happy."

Prince Harry and Markle reportedly maintained a good relationship with Queen Elizabeth II despite the tensions, with the duchess telling Oprah Winfrey last year that the late monarch had been "wonderful" to her.

Prince Harry and Markle visited Queen Elizabeth in Windsor, England, in April on their way to the Netherlands for the Invictus Games, which the prince sponsors and organizes. The couple also traveled to the U.K. with their children, Archie, 3, and Lilibet, 1, in June to attend the Queen's Platinum Jubilee celebrations.