Prince Harry's alleged behaviour is revealed in a new book, Courtiers: the Hidden Power Behind the Crown. Photo / Getty Images
Prince Harry's alleged behaviour is revealed in a new book, Courtiers: the Hidden Power Behind the Crown. Photo / Getty Images
Prince Harry used to send senior courtiers at the Palace "horrible emails" and was "just as dismissive" to staff as his wife, Meghan Markle.
That's according to a new book, Courtiers: the Hidden Power Behind the Crown, written by royal reporter for the Times, Valentine Low.
Low's recount reveals insider claims of mistreatment by the Prince before he stood down from his role as a senior royal.
The allegations are part of a slew of shocking revelations about the Duke of Sussex and his wife and name the Queen and Charles' private secretaries – Edward Young and Clive Alderton – as being among staff at the receiving end of the couple's disrespectful correspondence.
According to one of the author's sources, Palace staff were "run over" by Meghan, "and then run over by Harry.". Photo / Getty Images
According to the Sun, Low's latest work also claims private secretary Sam Cohen, PR executive Sarah Latham and assistant press secretary Marnie Gaffney were a trio left gobsmacked by Harry and Meghan. And he alleges aides were so traumatised by the pair they began to call themselves the "Sussex Survivors Club".
The Sun reports that one of Low's sources says the problem was everyone in the palace "was too genteel and civil".
They said: "When someone decides not to be civil, they have no idea what to do. They were run over by her, and then run over by Harry."
Meghan – who has denied previous allegations of bullying – was eventually deemed a "narcissistic sociopath" and aides say they "were played" by the couple.
Low writes: "Sources say the team came up with a damning epithet for Meghan: a 'narcissistic sociopath'."
In January 2020, Meghan and Harry made the bombshell announcement that they were stepping down as senior royals.
While Low claims in his new book that what became known as Megxit had been decided at the end of the previous year, plans were kept from many staffers until the eleventh hour.
"Shortly before the end of the year, Meghan confided in a member of her staff that the couple were not coming back," writes Low.
"The rest of the team did not find out until they held a meeting at Buckingham Palace at the beginning of January 2020. They found it hard to accept they were being dumped just like that. Some of them were in tears."
Low's book also describes "harsh" treatment of aides and disputes between Meghan and other royals and details the Sussexes' alleged behaviour ahead of their wedding.
Meghan and Harry's alleged mistreatment of staff stems back to before their 2018 nuptials. Photo / Getty Images
In June, it was reported that Buckingham Palace "buried" findings from a "highly sensitive" inquiry into Meghan's alleged bullying of her staff.
According to the Sunday Times of London, while the investigation led to changes in the monarchy's HR department's "policies and procedures", it is also alleged the Palace's findings will never be released.
Various claims and observations, including reports of concern from Kiwi Jason Knauf who was the Sussex's communications assistant in 2017 and 2018, led to an investigation beginning in March last year.
Knauf raised concern over Meghan's behaviour in October 2018, the month the couple toured Australia, New Zealand, Fiji and Tonga.
He alleged the new duchess' treatment of her staff had already driven two personal assistants out of the household, and that she was actively "undermining the confidence" of a third.
He wrote an email to Prince William's private secretary, Simon Case, stressing that both he and the palace's head of HR, Samantha Carruthers, thought "the situation was very serious" and he was "concerned that nothing will be done".
"I am very concerned that the Duchess was able to bully two PAs out of the household in the past year," Knauf wrote.
"The treatment of X was totally unacceptable. The Duchess seems intent on always having someone in her sights. She is bullying Y and seeking to undermine her confidence. We have report after report from people who have witnessed unacceptable behaviour towards Y."
Knauf stopped working for the Sussexes a short time later, instead taking up the post of chief executive of William and Kate's Royal Foundation.
A third aide also came forward to report "humiliating" mistreatment by Meghan when she arrived at Kensington Palace after her 2018 wedding.
Meanwhile the Times alleged bullying stretched back to 2017, prior to the couple's lavish nuptials.
Following the announcement of their engagement, it was reported that a senior aide gave Meghan and Harry a stern warning over their treatment of staff. To which the Times claims Meghan replied: "It's not my job to coddle people."
When the allegations were made public, a spokesperson for Markle vehemently denied them and said the duchess was "saddened by this latest attack on her character, particularly as someone who has been the target of bullying herself".
