Royal Dad Debate: King Charles 'Demanded' Prince Harry Take Paternity Test, Suspects Major James Hewitt Could Be His Father: Sources
Jan. 5 2023, Published 4:30 p.m. ET
There have always been rumblings about whether or not King Charles III is really Prince Harry's father, with the estranged Duke of Sussex revealing his dad often made hurtful remarks about the rumors. But Charles was serious when he allegedly "demanded" Harry take a paternity test following Queen Elizabeth's death, RadarOnline.com has learned.
In the wake of the late monarch's September 8 death at age 96, Harry and his wife, Meghan Markle, joined the royals for the 10-day funeral proceedings. According to a palace source, the newly crowned king "summoned Harry and brought up the idea of doing the best."
The insider added that "he needs to get to the bottom of it once and for all." For decades, rumors have swirled that Harry's biological father could be Princess Diana’s former lover Major James Hewitt due to the prince's fiery red hair and rebellious personality — which bears little resemblance to his buttoned-up, serious dad.
Charles wants to know the truth, which could cost Harry more than his estranged father.
"Basically, it means that one has to be of royal blood to inherit anything from the Queen, including royal jewels, properties, and all other assets," explained the insider. "The royal family has to be 100 percent certain that he's a blood relative."
Harry addressed the longstanding rumors about his biological dad in his upcoming book, Spare, which will hit shelves on Tuesday. He revealed that Charles often made "sadistic" jokes about it.
“Pa liked telling stories, and this was one of the best in his repertoire. He’d always end with a burst of philosophizing … Who knows if I’m really the Prince of Wales? Who knows if I’m even your real father?" Harry wrote in a newly released segment via Page Six.
Claiming Charles would "laugh and laugh," Harry called it a "remarkably unfunny joke, given the rumor circulating just then that my actual father was one of Mummy’s former lovers: Major James Hewitt."
Harry insisted the press kept the speculation going for its own amusement. "Never mind that my mother didn’t meet Major Hewitt until long after I was born,” he insisted.
While Hewitt claimed he met Diana at a dinner party in 1985, one year after Harry's birth, royal author Nicholas Davies accused the redhead of being "seen inside Charles and Diana's Kensington Palace home on several occasions in 1983," adding that Diana herself was not certain who Harry's father was.
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"She suspected that it was more likely to be him than her husband," Davies said. "Charles knew that Diana was sleeping with James during their marriage, but she always told him that it happened later on."
Charles and Harry's father-son relationship is already deeply fractured. He is reportedly livid with Harry and Meghan over their allegations of racism, their explosive Netflix docuseries. and Harry's upcoming tell-all.
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