Prince Harry shielded by late Queen's blessings despite heartbreaking decision

As Prince Harry prepared to return to the UK for his father's Coronation, he received a bittersweet final birthday message from the late Queen. 

Turning 38 in September last year, his birthday was overshadowed by sadness following his grandmother's passing a week earlier.

During that time, Prince Harry and wife Meghan Markle were in the UK to attend the Queen’s funeral. The day before, he had joined his brother William and their father, King Charles III, in leading the procession from Buckingham Palace to Westminster behind the Queen’s coffin.

Heartbreakingly, the Queen's last birthday message to Harry was for his 37th birthday in September 2021. Despite Harry's earlier decision to leave the Royal Family and start anew with Meghan in the US, Queen Elizabeth II had penned a heartfelt message.

The Queen's final birthday message to Prince Harry read: "Wishing The Duke of Sussex a happy birthday today!" The Royal Family's social media accounts also marked the occasion by posting four pictures of the Duke of Sussex. The snaps included one with Meghan in Australia in 2018 and another of the Duke with schoolchildren in Botswana.

Prince Harry was extremely close to his grandmother and even named his daughter Lilibet, which was the Queen's nickname. After the Queen’s death, the Duke of Sussex said: "In celebrating the life of my grandmother, Her Majesty The Queen—and in mourning her loss—we are all reminded of the guiding compass she was to so many in her commitment to service and duty.

“Granny, while this final parting brings us great sadness, I am forever grateful for all of our first meetings—from my earliest childhood memories with you, to meeting you for the first time as my Commander-in-Chief, to the first moment you met my darling wife and hugged your beloved great-grandchildren.”

Elizabeth II, Queen of the United Kingdom and the other Commonwealth realms, died on 8 September 2022 at Balmoral Castle in Scotland, at the age of 96.