A new biography about the Royal Family alleges that the Princess of Wales and the Prince of Wales viewed Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, as a threat, with Queen Camilla reportedly telling a friend that Meghan had “brainwashed” Prince Harry.
The claims appear in extracts from Tom Bower’s upcoming book, Betrayal: Power, Deceit And The Fight For The Future Of The Royal Family, portions of which were published by The Times. Bower, who previously authored Revenge: Meghan, Harry, And the War Between the Windsors in 2022, alleges that Meghan was regarded as a “divisive agent” within royal circles and that friction between the Sussexes and the Wales family had been building before Harry and Meghan left the UK in 2020.
The book also claims Prince Harry harbours concerns that his brother, the future king, holds the power to strip the Sussexes of their titles and bar him from returning to Britain. Bower further alleges that Meghan was troubled by Harry’s limited prospects of ever becoming king, and by the likelihood she would never hold the title of queen.
A section of the book devoted to the Invictus Games — the sporting tournament for wounded and veteran military personnel founded by Harry — refers to coverage of the event as “the Meghan Games,” suggesting the author believes media attention shifted away from the athletes and toward the couple.
Harry and Meghan’s representatives responded sharply to the extracts on Saturday, accusing Bower of having “long crossed the line from criticism into fixation.” Their statement highlighted a quote attributed to the author in which he reportedly said the monarchy “depends on actually obliterating the Sussexes,” calling the language self-explanatory.
The spokesperson added that Bower had built his career on “constructing ever more elaborate theories about people he does not know and has never met,” and directed those seeking accurate information to look elsewhere, describing his work as “deranged conspiracy and melodrama.”
The book is set to cover the Sussexes’ commercial activities since stepping back from royal duties, including their high-profile content deals with Netflix and Spotify, as well as their charitable work in the United States, where the couple now reside.
Bower’s previous Sussex-focused title attracted significant attention upon its release and became a bestseller. The forthcoming Betrayal is expected to generate similar controversy when it is published. Harry and Meghan are pictured together on the book’s cover.
