Prince Harry claimed in his tell-all memoir Spare that the older generation of royals have a “nearly zero-tolerance prohibition on all physical contact”.
“No hugs, no kisses, no pats. Now and then, maybe a light touching of cheeks – on special occasions,” he wrote. The Prince further claimed that his father didn’t hug him after breaking the news that his mother Princess Diana had died in a car crash in 1997, and instead just placed a hand on his knee. He wrote: “What I do remember with stunning clarity is that I did not cry. Not a tear. My father did not hug me.”
However, his assertions have been heavily disputed by those close to the King, while royal watchers have pointed to Charles’ open displays of affection over the years. Robert Jobson, author of Charles’ biography Our King, said the monarch has “always been a pretty good hugger, pretty relaxed about it”.
The royal expert added: “The people around the Royal Family can be strict, but the actual royals themselves have always been fairly relaxed. He [the King] is quite tactile and always has been. He’s got a twinkle in his eye.”
A Palace source further told The Telegraph that Charles “is a genuinely warm and affectionate man who is not embarrassed to express that in a public way. He’s a human and relatable person”. And in her book Charles: Victim or Villain?, Penny Junor also contradicted claims later made by Harry. “He fools around with the boys, they tease each other, laugh, joke, rough and tumble, and even hug and kiss,” she wrote.
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Recalling a last dinner party in a hotel restaurant, Junor said that in the middle of the dinner “Harry got to his feet and, in front of a table full of people, made a little speech to thank ‘Papa’ as both boys call him (rhymes with super), for giving him such a wonderful holiday. He then walked smartly up to his father and smothered his face in kisses, until, in mock embarrassment, the prince begged for mercy. It was a touching scene…”
And when William and Harry were small, “one of the biggest problems Charles’ valets had was keeping his suits clean,” Junor claimed. “Whenever Charles arrived home at Highgrove by helicopter, it would land in the front field, where sheep graze. As soon as William and Harry heard it overhead, they could come running out to meet him.
“Once it had landed safely, they would race across the field and jump up into his arms for a hug, smearing one suit after another with the sheep droppings they had trodden in on the way.” While Charles will show most of his physical affection behind closed doors, there have been plenty of instances when it has been captured on camera. Throughout William and Harry’s childhood, he was seen playing with the boys, sharing jokes, and warmly hugging them.
And there are more recent instances. The King was seen bending down to kiss his grandchildren, Prince George, Prince Louis, and Princess Charlotte at the coronation rehearsal at Westminster Abbey. And little Louis famously went to sit on his grandfather’s lap during the Platinum Jubilee, with Charles lovingly wrapping his arms around the little boy.
The King’s affection is not only limited to family members. Earlier this year, a New Zealand women’s rugby player surprised Charles by asking him for a hug at a Buckingham Palace reception. In response, the beaming King said “why not” – and was then warmly mobbed by a group of delighted players.
