LONDON — Prince Harry and his wife, Meghan, will return to the United Kingdom, seemingly marking the end to a yearslong rift between them and the royal family.
The Daily Telegraph reported the couple won’t resume their roles as working members of the royal family, but returning to Britain means King Charles III, who is being treated for an undisclosed form of cancer, will get to spend more time with his grandchildren.
Harry and Meghan quit royal duties in 2020 and moved to the United States, alleging hostility and racist attitudes by the press and royal establishment. But in recent months, there had been signs that the tumultuous relationship was beginning to thaw.
Here is a timeline of recent events involving Harry and the British royal family.
July 2016
Prince Harry and American actor Meghan Markle meet on a blind date set up by a mutual friend.
Nov. 8, 2016
Harry confirms Markle is his girlfriend and condemns press coverage of her. He says he fears for her safety and says press coverage crossed the line and used “racial undertones” in its stories. His comments remind many that his mother, Princess Diana, had died in a car crash while being pursued by photographers.
Nov. 27, 2017
Harry and Meghan announce their engagement.
May 19, 2018
Meghan and Harry get married in a grand ceremony at Windsor Castle.
2019-onwards
Harry launches lawsuits against three newspaper groups — Rupert Murdoch’s News Group, the Mirror Group and Associated Newspapers. He claims stories about his school days, teenage shenanigans and relationships with girlfriends were obtained by hacking, bugging, deception or other forms of illegal intrusion.
May 6, 2019
Harry and Meghan’s son Archie is born.
Jan. 8, 2020
Harry and Meghan announce they plan to “step back” as senior royals and become financially independent. The decision soon becomes a major rift, and the couple moves to Meghan’s native California.
February 2020
The committee that oversees royal security decides Harry will not receive the same level of taxpayer-funded protection as he did when he was a full-time royal. Harry later launches legal action against the U.K. government over the security decision.
Feb. 11, 2021
Meghan wins an invasion-of-privacy lawsuit against the Daily Mail publisher, Associated Newspapers, over the publication of a letter she wrote in 2018 to her estranged father.
June 4, 2021
Meghan and Harry’s daughter Lilibet is born.
Sept. 8, 2022
Queen Elizabeth II dies, aged 96, after 70 years on the throne. Her eldest son becomes King Charles III.
Jan. 10, 2023
Harry’s ghostwritten memoir “Spare” is published and becomes a bestseller. It recounts Harry’s grief at the death of his mother when he was 12, his frustrations in his royal role and anger at his father, brother, stepmother and the media, among others.
May 6, 2023
King Charles is crowned at Westminster Abbey. Harry attends without Meghan or the children.
June 6-7, 2023
Harry testifies in his case against the Mirror Group, becoming the first British royal in more than a century to appear in the witness box.
Dec. 5, 2023
A three-day court hearing begins on Harry’s claim over his security. Lawyers for the prince argue the decision to downgrade his protection was “unlawful and unfair.”
Dec. 15, 2023
Harry wins his case against the Mirror Group when a judge rules that Mirror newspapers had hired private investigators to snoop for personal information and engaged in illegal phone hacking for well over a decade. He is awarded legal costs and 140,000 pounds ($190,000) in damages.
Feb. 5, 2024
Buckingham Palace announces that King Charles has cancer and will receive treatment. Officials don’t say what form of cancer the king has.
Feb. 7, 2024
Prince Harry arrives in the U.K. from California to visit his father. He departs the next day.
Feb. 28, 2024
The High Court dismisses Harry’s security claim. He appeals the decision.
Jan. 22, 2025
The publisher of tabloid newspaper The Sun settles a lawsuit, offering Harry “a full and unequivocal apology” for intruding on his private life between 1996 and 2011, including incidents of unlawful activities.
May 2, 2025
Three Court of Appeal judges dismiss Harry’s case, saying the security decision was “sensible.” Harry responds in an interview, saying the decision means he can’t bring his wife and children to his home country.
May 3, 2025
In a long and at times emotional television interview, Harry says he wants reconciliation but also re-airs grievances against the royal family, the U.K. government and the media.
Sept. 8, 2025
Harry arrives in the U.K. to visit his charities amid signs of a thaw in the frigid relationship between him and the rest of the royal family. The trip coincides with the third anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II’s death.
Sept. 10, 2025
Harry joins King Charles for tea in London, marking the first time they’ve met in more than a year.
Oct. 17, 2025
Prince Andrew announces that he is giving up his royal title of the Duke of York and other honors after his friendship with sex offender Jeffrey Epstein returned to the headlines.
July 10, 2026
King Charles hosts Harry and meets with his family for the first time in years as they try to repair the rift. Harry, Meghan and their two children met with the king and Queen Camilla at Highgrove House, a country estate west of London.
Aug. 19, 2026
It has been revealed that Harry and Meghan will return to the UK, but they won’t resume their roles as working members of the royal family.
