King Charles 'Regrets' Having Sons William & Harry Walk Behind Their Mother's Coffin: 'It Haunts Him'
King Charles apparently shouldn't have had his sons, Prince William and Prince Harry, walk behind Princess Diana's coffin during her funeral, which took place in 1997.
"I think it haunts him because it haunts them, and they’ve spoken about it," author Christopher Andersen told Us Weekly. "I’ve written that I believe it’s a form of PTSD."
"[He said] it reminds him of that day when he had to walk behind the coffin, and they were more or less bullied into doing it by the palace – by the men in gray who really run the palace, the people that Diana used to complain about," Andersen continued. "[Charles, Earl Spencer], Diana’s brother … has also said that he felt that he was tricked into doing it and regrets it. He said it was like walking through a tunnel of grief."
Princess Diana died in a car accident in Paris, France; she was just 36 years old at the time.
Andersen believes William and Harry were most likely overwhelmed by the experience.
"I think both William and Harry thought, ‘Who are these strangers who never met her?’" said Andersen. "So, they were angry about what had happened. And Charles, I think, understands that to some extent he was responsible for them having to suffer through [that]."
In 2017, Harry, 38, shared more details about that pivotal moment in time.
"My mother had just died, and I had to walk a long way behind her coffin, surrounded by thousands of people watching me while millions more did on television," he recalled. "I don’t think any child should be asked to do that, under any circumstances. I don’t think it would happen today."
As a result, he sought therapy.
“I can safely say that losing my mom at the age of 12 and therefore shutting down all of my emotions for the last 20 years has had a quite serious effect on not only my personal life but also my work as well,” he said. “And it was only three years ago, funny enough, from the support around, and my brother and other people saying, ‘You really need to deal with this. It’s not normal to think that nothing has affected you.’"
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