According to the book William & Catherine: The Monarchy’s New Era – The Inside Story by Mirror royal editor Russell Myers, William and Catherine privately sent a gift and a congratulatory card to their niece, Princess Lilibet, following her birth in June 2021.
The gesture came at a particularly tense time between the two brothers, after the Duke and Duchess of Sussex stepped back from royal duties in 2020 and moved to the United States.
“William and Catherine sent a gift and a card of congratulations – although that would be the extent of their contact,” Myers wrote of their message to Lilibet, who is now four.
Catherine’s Public Comments
Not long after Lilibet was born, Catherine was asked by a CBS reporter whether she had met her niece and if she had a message for her.
“I wish her all the very best. I can’t wait to meet her, because we haven’t yet… met her yet, so hopefully that will be soon!” she said.
When pressed by another journalist on whether she had “Facetimed with her”, the Princess answered candidly: “No, I haven’t, no.”
Although the Waleses have previously met Harry and Meghan’s eldest child, Prince Archie, now six, it is believed they have still not met Lilibet — even after the Sussexes travelled to the UK around the time of Queen Elizabeth II’s death in September 2022.
@cbsnewsThe Duchess of Cambridge says she “can’t wait to meet” her new niece Lilibet, the daughter of Prince Harry and Meghan. #news #royalfamily #royal #baby
Fallout After Oprah and Spare
Relations between William and Harry worsened significantly following the Sussexes’ 2021 interview with Oprah Winfrey and Harry’s 2023 memoir, Spare, which included highly personal revelations about his brother and life within the royal family.
“While Catherine had demonstrated a steely resolve few had seen before, either publicly or in private, William was, according to several sources, absolutely seething,” Myers wrote of William’s reaction to the book.
“He felt betrayed by Harry to the extent that he vowed never to speak to him again. Such was his anger that he told one of his most trusted aides that he had ‘absolutely no time to entertain either of them [Harry and Meghan]’.”
Another source described how Catherine responded to the ongoing criticism aimed at the family.
“Her attitude was consistently ‘this will pass’,” they said.
“Whenever William would get riled up about it, she would calm the situation down and bring him back to what matters most to them. That is their family and what they are doing.”
Family Comes First
Speaking to People, Myers emphasised that family remains at the heart of William and Catherine’s priorities as they raise Prince George, 12, Princess Charlotte, 10, and Prince Louis, seven.
“They believe that having a strong, stable environment at home gives them the best chance of succeeding in what can be an incredibly challenging institution,” Myers said.
He added that even if reconciliation between the brothers never happens, the Prince and Princess of Wales would not block their children from forming a relationship with their cousins in California.
“William and Catherine had retreated from having any direct contact with the Sussexes, but they privately maintained that if there was a way for their children to have a relationship with their cousins in the future, they would not stand in their way.”
