Prince Harry Recalls Childhood Summers at Balmoral Castle: 'I Was Happy There'

Mar. 15, 2025

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Prince Harryrevisited childhood memories of summers at Balmoral Castle in his memoir,​​Spare.

“To me, Balmoral was always simply Paradise. A cross between Disney World and some sacred Druid grove,” Prince Harry wrote inSpare. “I was always too busy fishing, shooting, running up and down ‘the hill’ to notice anything off about the feng shui of the old castle,” he continued, referring to legends about the residence.

“What I’m trying to say, I was happy there,” he wrote. “In fact, it’s possible that I was never happier than that one golden summer day at Balmoral: August 30, 1997.”

Tim Graham Photo Library/Getty

Prince Harry went on to describe the royal family’s annual Balmoral respite as “its own micro-season” in the Scottish Highlands between the summer and fall, and that the first of their two week-stay there then was mostly spent outdoors.

“My family lived to be outdoors, especially Granny, who got cross if she didn’t breathe at least an hour of fresh air each day,” the Duke of Sussex wrote inSpare, referencing matriarchQueen Elizabeth.

(From left) The future King Charles, Prince Harry and Prince William at visit Glen Muick at Balmoral Castle on Aug. 16, 1997.Tim Graham Photo Library/Getty

Then-Prince Charles, who had been officially divorced fromPrincess Dianafor a year, confirmed to Harry that “Mummy’s in Paris,” reminding his sons to “be good” and not stay up too late that evening.

The following day, Aug. 31, Prince Harry and Prince William would learn that their mother died following a car accident in Paris just 36 years old.

Recalling how his father gently relayed the news in his Balmoral bedroom, Prince Harry wrote inSparethat “everything seemed to come to a stop.”

The royal family would continue to spend the late summer at Balmoral in the years that followed. King Charles has continued the tradition through his reign upon his accession following the death of Queen Elizabeth in September 2022. The late Queen died at Balmoral, a place she was known to be incredibly fond of, at age 96.

King Charles inspects the Balaklava Company, 5th Battalion, Royal Regiment of Scotland at the gates of Balmoral on Aug. 19, 2024.Jane Barlow/PA Images via Getty

Jane Barlow/PA Images via Getty

In PEOPLE’s exclusive Aug. 12cover story, sources said that Prince Harry andMeghan Marklewere snubbed of an invite to Balmoral Castle this summer.

For years, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex haven’t been invited to the royal family’s summer gathering in the Scottish Highlands, sources tell PEOPLE. While Harry grew up going to Balmoral, it’s believed that Meghan, 43, has never been to the Scottish castle.

Balmoral Castle in Scotland.Andrew Milligan/PA Images via Getty

Andrew Milligan/PA Images via Getty

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The Duke and Duchess of Sussex relocated to her home state of California after stepping back from their royal roles in 2020. They haven’t been back to the U.K. with their children,Prince Archie, 5, andPrincess Lilibet, 3, since Queen Elizabeth’s Platinum Jubilee in 2022 amid an ongoing rift.

King Charles and Prince Harry arrive at St. George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle on Sept. 19, 2022 before the committal service for Queen Elizabeth.DAVID ROSE/POOL/AFP via Getty

Despite apositive meetingbetween the King and his younger son in February following the sovereign’scancer diagnosis, their communication has since deteriorated. Those close to Prince Harry say the monarch no longer takes his son’s calls or responds to his letters.

“He gets ‘unavailable right now,'” a friend of Harry’s told PEOPLE. “His calls go unanswered. He has tried to reach out about the King’s health, but those calls go unanswered too.”

The Kingwas officially welcomed to Balmoralearlier this week with a small ceremony on Aug. 19. The royal sported a kilt as he inspected troops from Balaklava Company, 5th Battalion of the Royal Regiment of Scotland, and was reunited with their mascot, a Shetland pony known as Corporal Cruachan IV.

King Charles inspects the Balaklava Company, 5th Battalion, The Royal Regiment of Scotland, at the gates of Balmoral as he takes up summer residence at the castle on Aug. 19, 2024.Jane Barlow/PA Images via Getty

source: people.com