When the Duke of Sussex made his first speech after stepping down from royal duties in 2020 to seek his fortune abroad, he expressed both sadness and outrage that his grandmother, Queen Elizabeth, had not allowed him to maintain his ties to the armed forces.
“Our hope was to continue to serve the Queen, the Commonwealth and my military associations, but without public funding,” he told guests at a charity event in west London. “Unfortunately, that was not possible.”
Prince Harry will have been further wounded, old friends say, by watching his brother, Prince William, receive the rank of colonel-in-chief of the Army Air Corps from their father, King Charles, in a colourful ceremony in Middle Wallop, Hampshire, last month.
In his 2020 speech, Prince Harry expressed both sadness and outrage that his grandmother, Queen Elizabeth, had not allowed him to maintain his ties to the Armed Forces.
The place has a certain poignancy, as Middle Wallop is where Harry, 39, undertook his training before serving in the Army Air Corps as a co-pilot on Apache attack helicopters in Afghanistan.
There was a time when the younger brother might have legitimately expected to be given the role of Army Air Corpsman.
Although William, 42, went on to fly helicopters in the Royal Air Force’s search and rescue service, he has never been involved in active conflict.
However, Harry’s decision to leave royal life means he is no longer eligible for those honorary roles.
“Harry was genuinely hurt that he was not allowed to maintain his formal links with the military,” a British friend of the prince tells me. “They were very important to him.”
In the absence of any further honours from the King, Harry has opted to accept awards in the United States, his adopted country. And the latest of these has proved controversial.
Next week, the duke will receive the Pat Tillman Service Award at the annual Excellence in Sports Performance (ESPY) Awards, hosted by television network ESPN in Los Angeles, for his work with the Invictus Games Foundation. The host will be Meghan’s friend, tennis star Serena Williams.
The award is named in memory of a late American football star who left his career to serve in the military after the devastating terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.
Tillman was killed by friendly fire in Afghanistan three years later.
Harry founded the Invictus Games in 2014 to help wounded, injured or sick armed forces personnel and veterans, and has received widespread praise for the initiative.
However, the announcement of his Pat Tillman Award sparked protests in the United States, with more than 50,000 people signing a petition against it.
Among the critics is Tillman’s mother, Mary, who said: “I’m shocked that they chose such a controversial and divisive person to receive the award. There are far more suitable recipients. There are people working in the veterans community who are doing tremendous things to help veterans.
‘These people don’t have the money, the resources, the connections or the privileges that Prince Harry has.’
The ESPY award is just the latest honor the Duke has accepted since moving to California.
Among others was the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights Ripple of Hope Award, given to Harry and Meghan for the work they have done to “promote racial equality, social justice and mental health.”
Pat Tillman gave up his sports career to serve in the military after the devastating terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. He was killed by friendly fire in Afghanistan three years later.
A US showbiz source tells me: “These awards are great for keeping Harry and Meghan in the news. It raises their profile at a time when they are not producing much work.”
‘Their agents also love awards, because they keep everyone happy.’
For now, the backlash over the Pat Tillman Award suggests that the American public may be starting to view this endless stream of awards and honors as something of a public relations strategy.
For senior members of the Royal Family, honours are simply part of the role, whether it is taking up a senior position in a military regiment or receiving a new decoration, such as the Family Order worn by Queen Camilla at last week’s state banquet for Japanese Emperor Naruhito.
Today, however, Harry and Meghan are free from the constraints of the monarchy, an institution they appear to despise.
Why would they want or need new honors on a regular basis?
In fact, if Harry were to receive any honours, he would decline the Pat Tillman Award and let the event organisers give it to someone who puts the values of self-sacrifice and service before personal gain.
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