- Duke of Sussex was ‘knocked to the floor’ and left bruised, he says as he brands relationship a ‘rolling catastrophe’ in new book Spare
Prince Harry has claimed his brother William branded Meghan Markle ‘difficult’ and ‘rude’ in a stand-up row that ended with the Prince of Wales grabbing him by the collar and throwing him to the floor on to a dog bowl.
In an extraordinary excerpt from his upcoming autobiography Spare, leaked to the left-wing Guardian newspaper, Harry recalls what he describes as a physical attack by his sibling, which he claims left him with visible injuries, including scrapes and bruises.
The furious row allegedly broke out at his London home, Nottingham Cottage in the grounds of Kensington Palace in 2019. William is said to have branded Meghan ‘difficult’, ‘rude’ and ‘abrasive’ and insisted he was trying to ‘help’ his younger brother during a meeting about ‘the whole rolling catastrophe’.
Harry accused his brother of ‘parroting the press narrative’ about his American wife before a screaming match ensued, ending in a physical altercation, the book claims.
He claims he gave the heir to the throne a glass of water and said: ‘Willy, I can’t speak to you when you’re like this’.
Describing what he claims happened next, and insisting he was scared, the former soldier said: ‘He set down the water, called me another name, then came at me. It all happened so fast. So very fast. He grabbed me by the collar, ripping my necklace, and he knocked me to the floor. I landed on the dog’s bowl, which cracked under my back, the pieces cutting into me. I lay there for a moment, dazed, then got to my feet and told him to get out’.
Harry claims that William had then urged him to fight back, saying that is what would happen when they scrapped as children.
But the Duke of Sussex claims he refused, claiming that William left and then returned ‘looking regretful, and apologised’.
William then ‘turned and called back: “You don’t need to tell Meg about this”.’
Harry claims he said: ‘You mean that you attacked me?’, to which William replied: ‘I didn’t attack you, Harold’.
The Duke of Sussex says that the first person he spoke to about it was his therapist, on the phone.
But he claims Meghan would see the cuts ‘scrapes and bruises’ on his back from the dog bowl.
He claims his wife ‘wasn’t that surprised, and wasn’t all that angry. She was terribly sad’.
The extract has been published by the Guardian. It is not known how the newspaper obtained an early copy of the book, given that the publisher Penguin Random House has gone to great lengths to prevent leaks.
The leak also reveals:
- King Charles pleaded with his warring sons William and Harry not to make his ‘final years a misery’ at meeting following death of Prince Philip;
- Harry called his therapist before his wife Meghan after being ‘knocked to the floor’ by his brother;
- Duke of Sussex claims William and Kate told him to wear a Nazi uniform to a fancy dress party;
- Princes Harry and William refer to each other as ‘Willy’ and ‘Harold’;
- King Charles allegedly told Harry’s mother Princess Diana on the day that he was born: ‘Wonderful! Now you’ve given me an heir and a spare – my work is done.’
There will be a probe at publisher Penguin over the leak. One excerpt also made it to Page Six in the US.
Sources previously said arrangements for Harry’s ‘explosive’ memoir’s release were ultra-closely guarded and being managed in minute detail, with only a handful of senior executives aware of the exact details.
In one dramatic extract, Harry writes that William ‘grabbed me by the collar, ripping my necklace, and… knocked me to the floor’. The Duke of Sussex claims he was left with a visible injury to his back.
MailOnline has contacted Buckingham Palace for comment. The brothers, according to Harry, had met to discuss ‘the whole rolling catastrophe’ of their relationship and struggles with the press.
But the heir to the throne arrived to Nottingham Cottage ‘piping hot’, Harry writes.
The Duke had been living in the home, known as Nott Cott and situated in the grounds of Kensington Palace, at the time of the alleged incident in 2019.
When they began arguing about Meghan, Harry claims William was not being rational, leading to a shouting match.
Harry said he told his brother he was unable to understand why he was not happy with being ‘the spare’, accusing his brother of acting like an heir. William told him he was trying to help him.
Harry said: ‘Are you serious? Help me? Sorry – is that what you call this? Helping me?’
It was that comment, according to Harry, which infuriated William, causing him to swear while stepping towards him.
Harry said he was scared and retreated to the kitchen as William followed, and then Harry claims he was attacked.
He said: ‘I landed on the dog’s bowl, which cracked under my back, the pieces cutting into me. I lay there for a moment, dazed, then got to my feet and told him to get out.’
It was then that William told his brother to hit him back, a reference to scraps they had as children, Harry writes.
The Duke said he refused to retaliate and that William left, before returning ‘looking regretful’ and apologising.
The dramatic extract revealed just days before the book’s official release is likely to see a surge in sales.
It comes as Prince Harry’s tell-all memoir Spare is already No2 on Amazon’s best-seller list in pre-sales in North America and the UK.
The Duke of Sussex‘s book, which is set to be released early next week, has long been expected to double-down on his attacks on the Royal Family.
Spare is currently on sale for $22.40 on Amazon in the US and half price at £14 on the UK site.
The hardback of Spare will be in UK bookshops when they open on Tuesday morning, with the e-book edition available to download on Kindle from shortly after midnight on the same day.
In the United States, which is five to eight hours behind Britain, it will be the evening of Monday January 9 when e-book copies of the book become available on Kindle, at the same moment as the clock strikes midnight on Tuesday morning in the UK.
There are ultra-secure arrangements in place, with the duke and his publishers going to great lengths to ensure it is published simultaneously around the world next Tuesday.
Prince Harry has been secretly working on the book about his life in the Royal Family for over a year as part of a reported $20 million book deal with Penguin Random House.
He has collaborated with the Pulitzer-winning ghostwriter J. R. Moehringer in a rare move from a senior member of the royal family. Moehringer is reported set to be paid $1million for her contribution.
Spare is being published in 16 languages including Chinese, Finnish, Hungarian, Spanish and Portuguese, but no one was supposed to be able to get their hands on an early copy.
While King Charles may be spared the worst of the duke’s rage, the book was long understood to contain damaging details about his bitter fallout with his brother, with both William and his wife Kate coming under fire in its 416 pages.
Spare tells Harry’s story with ‘raw, unflinching honesty’, according to Penguin Random House.
Publishing sources said arrangements for Harry’s ‘explosive’ memoir’s release were ultra-closely guarded and being managed in minute detail, with only a handful of senior executives aware of the exact details.
Deliveries to bookshops are being scheduled to be last-minute to avoid unauthorised copies being leaked. Guarded sites across the world have been secured to house copies of the book prior to distribution.
One likened the sophisticated security operation to the 2007 release of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, when JK Rowling was determined her young fans would not have the experience spoilt by learning of the boy wizard’s fate before reading the seventh and final novel in the series.
An army of guards, satellite tracking systems and legal contracts were all deployed to protect the 10 million first copies of the new Harry Potter book. When the finished manuscript was taken by hand from London to New York, a lawyer for the American publisher sat on it during the flight.
When copies were sent out to retailers, lorries were fitted with satellite tracking systems which would reveal if any of the vehicles deviated from their intended routes.
Prince Harry and Meghan are said to have signed a $20million four-book deal with the publishing giant Penguin Random House, with the fourth reportedly being an autobiography by the Duchess of Sussex.
It comes as the Royal Family are ‘completely exhausted’ with the ‘stream of misinformation’ from the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, sources have claimed.
Daily Mail (UK)