How Harry's Uncle Charles became his biggest 'ally in Britain': 'No love lost' between Windsors and Spencers, claims royal expert after Sussexes stayed at Diana's family home

Prince Harry's decision to stay at Princess Diana's ancestral stately home in the UK indicates that there is 'no love lost between the Windsors and Spencers', according to a royal expert.After being unable to stay at Buckingham Palace, Meghan Markle revealed to her 4.7million Instagram followers that the Sussex family stayed as guests of Harry's uncle, Earl Spencer, at the sprawling Althorp Estate during their UK visit.In one of a series of images shared by the Duchess of Sussex, Lilibet, five, is seen walking through the Northamptonshire estate's famous avenue of trees, close to the private island on a lake where Diana is buried.Ahead of her are Harry and Archie, seven, with all three carrying large bouquets of flowers to lay at Princess Diana's grave and the nearby memorial.The Sussexes trip was said to have given Harry and Meghan's children an 'opportunity to spend time at a place so closely tied to their late grandmother, who died in a car crash in Paris in 1997 when Harry was 12,' People reported.Sources later confirmed to the Daily Mail that Meghan's pictures were taken at Althorp.Yet according to royal expert Richard Fitzwilliams, Harry's decision to stay with his 'ally', Earl Spencer, serves as a powerfully poignant reminder of his frayed relationship with the Royal Family.He told The Daily Mail: 'The Windsors and the Spencer’s have a superficially polite relationship. If you look deeper, there is clearly no love lost, memories of Diana will always influence relations between them.'The relations between the Royal Family and the Spencer's have been marked by politeness but not closeness. However, the Spencers definitely appear to be closer to Harry than William.Lilibet was seen walking through an avenue of trees and hedges at Althorp, Princess Diana's childhood home - with Harry and Archie strolling together up ahead appearing to hold bouquets In one of a series of images shared by the Duchess of Sussex, Lilibet, five, is seen walking through the Northamptonshire estate's famous avenue of trees, close to the private island on a lake where Diana is buried After being unable to stay at Buckingham Palace , Meghan Markle revealed to her 4.7million Instagram followers that the family stayed as guests of Harry's uncle, Earl Spencer , at the sprawling Althorp Estate (pictured) during their UK visit'The Sussexes have an ally in Britain which they can use as and when they choose to return. 'This almost certainly means that Harry can rely on a base at Althorp when he needs one and this would undoubtedly extend to Meghan and Archie and Lili.'Mr Fitzwilliams claimed that Harry's 'closeness' with the Spencers is 'likely to cause concern for the Royal Family'. He added: 'The Sussexes have been uncharacteristically silent since the meeting with King Charles and Queen Camilla.'Harry is fully aware that whereas the King was undoubtedly pleased to see his grandchildren, Prince William ostentatiously played polo supported by Catherine on the day they met, which signalled strong disapproval of the King's decision.'During future visits, Mr Fitwilliams suspects that the Sussexes will likely opt to stay with the Spencers, rather than with the Royal Family. 'Whatever reception they receive from the Royal Family, they can be assured of a warm welcome and moral support from the Spencer's,' he said. 'The Spencers would undoubtedly welcome the opportunity to see them again and they would undoubtedly be able to stay with them if they so wished.'Indicative of Harry and Earl Spencer's close bond, the prince was said to have previously sought advice about changing his family name to Spencer. Sources said the Duke of Sussex actively explored ways to assume his mother's surname – a move that would have involved ditching Mountbatten-Windsor, used by his children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet.It is understood he discussed the issue with Earl Spencer – whose family seat is Althorp in Northamptonshire – during a rare visit to Britain, but was told that the legal hurdles were insurmountable.'They had a very amicable conversation and Spencer advised him against taking such a step,' said a friend of Harry.Nevertheless, the fact that he consulted the Earl over the issue – a proposal that would dismay his brother and father – is a vivid expression of the toxic rift with his family.In the acknowledgements of Spare, Harry shared his gratitude to Earl Spencer for supporting him through the challenges he faced following his mother's death. Archie was also pictured walking barefoot and looking toward the sunset while holding a stick in Althorp. According to royal expert Richard Fitzwilliams, Harry and Meghan's Althorp stay serves as a powerfully poignant reminder of his frayed relationship with the Royal Family Pictured: a shrine to the late Princess of Wales at Althorp. Mr Fitzwilliams noted that Harry's 'closeness' with the Spencers is 'likely to cause concern for the Royal Family'During a visit to the UK in 2024 for the funeral of Diana's brother-in-law Lord Robert Fellowes, the prince opted to stay with Earl Spencer after reportedly turning down an offer of lodging at Buckingham Palace.Mr Fitzwilliams previously told The Daily Mail that Harry's choice to stay at Althorp 'throws into sharp relief the apparent breakdown in relations not only with his brother, to whom he has reportedly not spoken for two years, but with his father'.He added: 'The announcement of his staying at Althorp after the memorial service intentionally emphasises his links with his mother's family.'Perhaps it will be they, and not members of the Royal Family, who will support him when the Invictus Games are held in Birmingham in 2027.'What is clear is that he feels at home with the Spencers and who can forget Earl Spencer's oration at his mother's funeral. Who knows where that might lead in the future?'According to the BBC's former royal correspondent Michel Cole, there 'never much was love lost between the Spencers and the Windsors'. He pointed out that while Harry's 'birth family' – led by Earl Spencer and Lady Jane Fellowes – went to St Paul's to support the Duke, 'the entire Royal Family stayed away'.He also recalled that when Princess Diana's coffin arrived for burial on the Spencer family estate of at Althorp in Northamptonshire in 1997, Earl Spencer 'whipped off the flag that covered it and replaced it with the Spencer standard'.Mr Cole said: 'Nothing could have illustrated more clearly the gap that will always separate two famous families.'Words have power and actions have consequences, as Prince Harry - whose criticisms of his Windsor family have been harsh, cruel and wounding - is increasingly finding out. ' Mr Fitzwilliams told The Daily Mail: 'The Windsors and the Spencer’s have a superficially polite relationship. If you look deeper, there is clearly no love lost, memories of Diana will always influence relations between them' According to the BBC's former royal correspondent Michel Cole, when Princess Diana's coffin arrived for burial on the Spencer family estate of at Althorp in Northamptonshire in 1997, Earl Spencer 'whipped off the flag that covered it and replaced it with the Spencer standard' Charles Spencer and his sister Diana are pictured here as children in 1968. During future visits, Mr Fitwilliams suspects that the Sussexes will likely opt to stay with the Spencers, rather than with the Royal FamilyThe photographs shared by the Sussexes come after Harry's five-day trip to the UK, which was focused on Invictus and his former charities. While the prince reportedly wanted Meghan and their two children to fly with him, Harry instead arrived in the UK alone.Hours before he arrived in London, fresh chaos erupted when an invitation to stay at Buckingham Palace was withdrawn.Meanwhile, Meghan delayed her arrival and entered the country secretly with Archie, seven, and Lilibet, five, amid ongoing security concerns.A friend of the couple said Meghan would have felt 'humiliated' and experienced 'sadness' over the way the week unfolded.Meghan's series of 'summer holiday' snaps of Harry with their children while in Europe were widely believed to have been taken in Portugal, where the Sussexes reportedly purchased a second property near Harry's cousin, Princess Eugenie and her husband Jack Brooksbank.In one photo Meghan can be seen laughing with Harry at a dinner table, while in another she is seen walking near the beach with Lilibet. There was also a shot of Archie walking barefoot in the sunset holding a stick and one of Harry playfully tossing Lilibet through the air while in a swimming pool.Harry runs towards churning waves in another, with Lilibet and Archie dashing behind him in tow, while Meghan watches from the shore.Archie also appeared in the cockpit of a plane donning a pilot's hat, while the three aviators surrounded him as he took a turn pretending to fly.In all the pictures of the children, their faces were turned away from the camera in a fashion that has become typical for Meghan – a move she has done to protect their privacy. Meghan Markle has shared a series of 'summer holiday' photos of Prince Harry and their children Archie and Lilibet while in EuropeBut there are no photos of their reunion with King Charles and Queen Camilla at Highgrove a fortnight ago.Following their trip on the continent, Harry, Meghan, Archie and Lilibet enjoyed a private cup of tea with King Charles and Queen Camilla at the royal residence. The visit – which would have been the first time Charles had seen his daughter-in-law and grandchildren since 2022 – was confirmed by Buckingham Palace after the family had left.Harry and his family are believed to have met the King and Queen for more than an hour.Highgrove, the King's private Gloucestershire estate, is where Harry spent much of his childhood, complete with the treehouse and swimming pool he knew as a boy.It came after a chaotic back-and-forth over where Harry would stay during his trip, with Charles said to have lost patience when Harry dithered over an offer to stay at Buckingham Palace initially. Harry's spokesman subsequently briefed the BBC that he would be staying at the Palace, only for the King's aides to indicate that he had left it too late.The 13,000 acre Althorp estate holds particular poignance to Harry - having been where Earl Spencer and Diana grew up with their two sisters.In his memoir Spare, Harry revealed that Meghan kneeled and put her palms on Diana's grave at the estate in 2017 and asked his late mother for 'clarity and guidance'.On the 20th anniversary of her death, Harry and Meghan had rowed out to Diana's final resting place on an island. After some time reflecting, he sensed Meghan wanted a moment to herself by the site.'When I returned, she was on her knees with her eyes closed and her palms flat against the stone,' Harry wrote.