How Prince Harry Has Further Separated From The Royal Family 》

While 2020 was an insane year for everyone, it was especially groundbreaking for Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. That’s because, in January, they functionally left the royal family behind.

They still have their titles as Duke and Duchess of Sussex, of course. But they left behind their responsibilities as senior royals, which was completely unheard of at the time. And just to really rub salt in the wound of their royal family members, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have started a new life for themselves in Los Angeles.

You might think moving 5,500 miles away from the rest of his family would be enough distance. Now, as Harry and Meghan have launched a new charity called Archewell, it looks like Prince Harry is distancing himself even further.

Prince Harry leaves The Royal Foundation

Harry’s latest extrication from the royal family has to do with a charity called the Endeavour Fund, which he created in 2012. The fund works with wounded, injured, and sick service personnel and veterans to help reintegrate them back into civilian life. Or, as the official website puts it, to help them “re-engage with sport or adventurous challenge after sustaining injury or falling ill during their time in the military.”

Originally, the Endeavour Fund was part of The Royal Foundation, the charitable umbrella organization Prince Harry established with his brother Prince William in 2009.

However, in June 2020, the Endeavour Fund officially left The Royal Foundation. It’s now part of the Invictus Games Foundation. The Invictus Games is a sporting event for veterans, which the Endeavour Fund helped start.

But, by taking the Endeavour Fund out of The Royal Foundation, Harry cut one of his last formal ties to his brother William. So, what’s the reason?

Why Harry cut this formal tie with William

At first glance, you might think that Harry removed the Endeavour Fund from The Royal Foundation because it was his preference. However, the likeliest reason this happened goes back to his decision to abandon his responsibilities as a senior royal.

That decision came with some real “fine print.” In this case, the fine print included that by stepping down as senior royals, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle would no longer be patrons for charities within The Royal Foundation.

In other words, if Prince Harry wanted to continue working with the Endeavour Fund, he had to remove it from The Royal Foundation. But that foundation is primarily run by Prince Charles and Kate Middleton. And there is a chance that Prince Harry’s decision is creating a further strain for his family.

What does the royal family think?

A natural question would be “what does Prince Harry’s family think about all of this?” But that is one of the more difficult questions to answer.

After all, plenty of headlines speculate about an ongoing feud between William and Harry, as well as one between Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle. If beef exists between these family members, then Harry pulling away from The Royal Foundation may make things worse.

This decision is just one more way that Prince Harry will be making his own way through the world. Previously, it looked like he and William would be able to coordinate on future charitable efforts. But by removing the Endeavour Fund from The Royal Foundation, Prince Harry may have closed that door forever.

New country, new life

The original spirit of America comes from settlers looking for a new life. It is a bit ironic, then, that centuries after our Revolutionary War, a British royal like Prince Harry would come here to seek out a new life of his own.

But in a rather short time, that is exactly what this runaway royal has managed to do. In addition to making fast friends with some of America’s most famous celebs, Harry and Meghan have made headlines with their charitable efforts in the U.S. They showed their giving spirit shortly after the pandemic began by delivering food to needy people in Los Angeles for a charity called Project Angel Food.

Now, Harry and Meghan have launched a charity of their own called Archewell. Plans for Archewell were announced in March, but COVID-19 created delays. In October, the official website launched and the charity itself sounds pretty ambitious.

Why Harry & Meghan’s new charity is called Archewell

As the website points out, “arche” is a Greek word meaning “source of action.” And of course, a well is “a plentiful source or supply; a place we go to dig deep.” Put them together, and you have a kind of mission statement: Prince Harry and Meghan Markle will be using this new charity to take direct action to supply much-needed resources to various communities.

In a March statement announcing the end of their Sussex Royal charitable foundation and the formation of Archewell, Harry and Meghan even revealed that the same inspiration for Archewell inspired the name for their son Archie! “Before SussexRoyal came the idea of ‘arche’ — the Greek word meaning ‘source of action.’ We connected to this concept for the charitable organization we hoped to build one day, and it became the inspiration for our son’s name. To do something of meaning, to do something that matters.”

Beyond the initial website, we still don’t know much about Archewell, other than that it will help causes such as conservation, female empowerment, and gender equality. Harry and Meghan want to wait until the pandemic is under control before promoting their charity. But its very existence showcases Prince Harry’s commitment to continuing his charitable activities. This hasn’t changed though he left The Royal Foundation behind for good.