Family dynamics are tricky for the best of us, and they’re even harder when you work together. That goes double (triple?) when you and your co-workers are the Windsors. Toss in the crown, a few palaces and a lot of royal egos, we’re talking full-on regal explosions.
It’s safe to say the Windsors have had a bit of a challenging time lately, between Andrew’s continued fall from grace and Prince Harry’s ongoing antics, plus the cancer journeys of King Charles and Princess Kate. So it was a relief—for a time, at least—to believe things had calmed down behind the palace walls and that everything was rosy for the rest of the royals. But is that accurate? Apparently not!
Now there’s more behind-the-scenes drama brewing, and Prince William is at the center of it. What’s going on? Read on to find out.
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Who has William been sparring with lately?
His father, King Charles.
Things came to a head over the Christmas holiday, during the annual walk to church at Sandringham on Christmas Day. According to a recent report, William was opposed to having his cousins Beatrice and Eugenie take part in the procession at the family’s Norfolk home, an event that always attracts worldwide coverage. The princesses, who attended with their husbands, were snapped walking behind the king and queen.
Celebrity journalist Rob Shuter claims William was against this. “William warned that publicly parading Prince Andrew’s daughters would drag the monarchy back into scandal at the worst possible moment, and he thought it a disaster waiting to happen,” he wrote on his Substack.
Apparently, though, the king overruled William and invited his nieces, who, after all, have done nothing wrong. According to body-language expert Judi James, the inclusion of the princesses was seen as a deliberate act of unity. “The Firm themselves seemed to have planned an emphatic visual ‘statement’ of their own when it came to the king’s nieces,” James told the Mirror.
Have the princesses been included in other events recently?
Beatrice and Eugenie did not attend Kate’s Christmas-carol concert in early December, which they usually attend. That said, they do seem to have been invited.
“Wish Bea and I could have been celebrating tonight with our family,” Eugenie posted on Instagram. “Wishing @princeandprincessofwales such a special evening at her incredible carol service. What an amazing message of love and hope.”
Meanwhile, Andrew (now called Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor), was not at Sandringham either, but he was snapped in Windsor over Christmas. Sarah Ferguson, his ex-wife, was nowhere to be seen.
What else are William and Charles arguing about?
While the father and son continue to work together closely, they’re reportedly not seeing eye to eye on quite a few things. The heir to the throne has been vocal about his desire to change the monarchy, and insiders say his father doesn’t always appreciate his views. Here are a few of the ongoing conflicts.
William’s work ethic
William and Kate have been open about the fact that they want to approach royal life differently than previous generations, putting less emphasis on cutting ribbons at opening ceremonies and more on impactful endeavors such as William’s climate initiative and Kate’s early-childhood campaign. While their children are young, they want to spend as much time with them as possible, say royal reporters.
However, the huge disparity between the younger royal’s workload and his dad’s doesn’t seem to be sitting super well with the king. “The Wales’ comparatively light workload may provoke the occasional raised eyebrow at Buckingham Palace, but they have long insisted that they wish to approach their public roles differently,” Victoria Ward, the Telegraph‘s deputy royal editor, wrote in January.
The numbers are stark, according to the just-released 2025 royal-work stats: Charles was the hardest-working royal of 2025, with 533 engagements, beating reigning champ Princess Anne, who came in at 478. That’s more than double the workload of William, who undertook just 202 engagements.
William’s desire to modernize
Last October, William shared his vision for a modernized monarchy with Eugene Levy on his Apple TV series The Reluctant Traveler. What did he say, exactly? “Change is on my agenda,” and he hopes to “impact people’s lives for the better.” The king was less than impressed, insiders say.
William didn’t stop there. “History can be a real weight and an anchor around you, and you can feel suffocated by it, and restricted by it too much,” he continued. “It’s important to live for the here and now.” He also added that he wants to “question things more.”
According to Shuter, William and Charles’s relationship hit a low after the show aired. “Charles is livid that his son spoke so candidly about his childhood and hinted at reforming the monarchy,” he wrote.
The Harry and Andrew problem
Back in 2023, royal biographer Omid Scobie claimed William was frustrated by his father’s perceived lack of action around Prince Andrew. In fact, William even pushed for Andrew to be stripped of his title. “Charles’s reluctance baffled William, who didn’t have much confidence in his father to do the right thing,” Scobie wrote in his book Endgame. “Though they share passions and interests, their style of leadership is completely different.”
Regarding Harry, Charles is understood to be open to a reconciliation with his youngest son, while William is less keen—and it’s causing tensions. “Charles, I am told, is tiring of his elder son’s self-righteous intractability in the family feud, and wants to re-embrace Harry—if only he can keep his mouth shut,” royal biographer Tina Brown wrote in the New York Times.
Family life
In his frank chat with Levy, William admitted that he has difficulty dealing with family problems. “Stuff to do with family overwhelms me quite a bit,” he said. “You know, worry or stress around the family side of things.” Talking about his parents’ divorce, he added, “You try and make sure you don’t do the same mistakes as your parents.” This detail—according to Shuter—was a real problem for Charles. “The king sees it as betrayal, not honesty,” Shuter said.
Has their relationship always been strained?
Yes and no. It’s fair to say William and Harry’s childhood wasn’t a happy, carefree one, as they went through their parents’ divorce and then suffered the loss of their mom, Princess Diana. William and Harry then had to come to terms with having Camilla as their stepmother.
However, over the years, William thawed and his father softened. In 2018, William told the BBC he’d love for his father to spend more time with his kids. “Having more time with him at home would be lovely … and being able to play with the grandchildren,” he said. “Because when he’s there, he’s brilliant.”
Thrown together in the family business, William is aware he needs both a working and personal relationship with his father, even if he can’t wait to do things his way. “Personally, I want to be my own man and take my own style, my own passions and my own interests, my way, and do things slightly differently,” he said in the documentary Prince, Son, Heir: Charles at 70. “I think it is important that each generation does things a little bit differently than the previous.”
What are these arguments really about?
The problems are twofold. There are family dynamics at play, of course, but also wider implications about the future of the monarchy. As William told Levy: “I think it’s very important that tradition stays, and tradition has a huge part in all of this, but there’s also points where you look at tradition and go, Is that still fit for purpose today?”
That honesty could be hard for Charles to hear. The king, who himself wanted to modernize the monarchy when he was a prince, has to listen to his son’s plans without feeling like he’s being criticized—and it’s a fine line.
Just how much does Charles listen to William?
A lot. Despite rumors that the pair don’t always get along, William has been central in decision-making around key issues such as Andrew being removed as a royal (and more recently, from his home, Royal Lodge). “Though the queen was the official face of Andrew’s reckoning, it was Prince William who set the wheels in motion,” Scobie wrote in Endgame.
What does the future hold for the pair?
Looking forward, William is clear he needs to do things differently and—probably more so than Charles—understands the importance of the monarchy’s brand image in modern times. So much so that palace officials were quick to confirm that the eight-bedroom Forest Lodge in Windsor, where Kate and William moved in 2025, will be their forever home, even after they take the throne. It will be the most modest home a monarch has ever resided in.
And William may even push the family to jettison some of their other homes and palaces. “Something that is beyond question, to my mind, is the need to dispense with the vast property portfolio that William will inherit,” former BBC royal correspondent Jennie Bond told i Paper. “Nobody needs so many houses, castles and palaces. And it is particularly offensive when juxtaposed with William’s campaign to end homelessness.”
What the king will think of that, we will see.
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Reader’s Digest has published hundreds of stories on the British royal family, providing a behind-the-scenes look at the fascinating facets of the monarchy. We regularly cover topics including the latest royal news, the history and meaning behind time-honored traditions, and the everyday quirks of everyone’s favorite family members, from Queen Elizabeth’s daily snack to Prince William’s confessions about his home life. We’re committed to producing high-quality content by writers with expertise and experience in their field in consultation with relevant, qualified experts. We rely on reputable primary sources, including government and professional organizations and academic institutions as well as our writers’ personal experiences where appropriate. We verify all facts and data, back them with credible sourcing and revisit them over time to ensure they remain accurate and up to date. Read more about our team, our contributors and our editorial policies.
Sources:
- Naughty but Nice Substack: “Charles and William at War”
- Mirror: “Beatrice and Eugenie’s ‘tension and worry’ in fresh Andrew plan as clear statement issued”
- Endgame by Omid Scobie
- Telegraph: “King overtakes Princess Anne as hardest-working member of Royal family”
- New York Times: “The Quiet Triumph of King Charles III”
- BBC: “Prince, Son and Heir: Charles at 70”
- Times of London: “Kate will be a queen who really listens”
- i Paper: “My Warning to William”
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