Queen Denies Prince Harry’s Request for Remembrance Sunday Wreath

Prince Harry's request for a wreath to be laid on his behalf for last year's Remembrance Sunday was denied by the Queen, according to a palace source.

The Duke of Sussex, an army veteran, made the request after departing from the royal family earlier in the year with wife Meghan Markle.

The Queen reportedly took all of two seconds to make the decision to reject her grandson's request.

The move caused a stir at the time and allegedly added to tensions between the firm and the Sussexes.

However, some royal observers pointed out that the royal family never lays out a wreath as a sign of personal respect, but instead, it is done on behalf of the public or an organization.

For instance, the Queen lays out a wreath not as a personal gesture, but on behalf of the nation.

The alleged request and subsequent reaction seemed to miss this quite important point.

The Cenotaph is a public monument, so if Harry wanted to pay his personal respects, he could have a wreath laid at any time.

It did not need to be a public ceremony.

In fact, the Cenotaph is there, on a public road, and after the official ceremonies happen, people can lay wreaths.

It is a public memorial.

While the firm gathered at the Cenotaph last year, Harry and Meghan paid their respects at the Los Angeles National Cemetery.

The Queen will no longer attend today's Remembrance Sunday service at the Cenotaph in London as she has sprained her back.

Buckingham Palace said in a statement that the monarch was disappointed to miss the event.

The Queen spent a night in the hospital before returning to work at Windsor Castle the next day.

However, she has been carrying out light, desk-based duties and cancelled her attendance at all royal events.

Harry was also absent in the wake of his departure from the royal family earlier in the year.

A palace source claimed to the paper that Remembrance Sunday is sacrosanct when it comes to Her Majesty's diary.

It's one of the most important dates in her calendar and nothing is done without her knowledge.

The source continued, While she has enormous admiration for Harry's achievements both in and out of the military, this was seen as an example of his lack of understanding of what it means for him to be a non-working royal.

The Queen is very firmly of the opinion that you can't pick and choose what you do when it comes to the institution.

Either you are in or you are out.

People were suggesting the palace's reaction to what Harry asked was petty.

But it was the Queen's decision.

And what's more, she actually had very strong views on the subject.

Harry committed 10 years of service to the army, but some royal observers pointed out that the royal family never lays out a wreath as a sign of personal respect.

Instead, it is done on behalf of the public or an organization.

The whole thing, the alleged request, and then the reaction seems to be missing this quite important point.

If Harry wanted to lay a wreath at the Cenotaph, it didn't have to be as part of that ceremony.

The Cenotaph is there, on a public road, and after the official ceremonies happen, people can lay wreaths.

It is a public memorial, and when someone visited London a couple of weeks ago, there was a wreath of sunflowers that someone had left there, which was beautiful.

In conclusion, Prince Harry's request for a wreath to be laid on his behalf for last year's Remembrance Sunday was denied by the Queen.

Although some thought the palace's reaction was petty, the royal family never lays out a wreath as a sign of personal respect.

Instead, it is done on behalf of the public or an organization.

If Harry wanted to pay his personal respects, he could have a wreath laid at any time.

It did not need to be a public ceremony.