Prince Harry Plans to Parent Differently Than Charles: Breaking 'the Cycle'

Prince Harry wants his 2-year-old son, Archie, to avoid the ‘pain and suffering’ he experienced as a child — details

His own style. Prince Harry wants to raise his 2-year-old son, Archie, differently than Prince Charles raised him.

“Isn’t life about breaking the cycle?” the former military pilot, 36, explained on the Thursday, May 13, episode of Dax Shepard’s “Armchair Expert” podcast. “There’s no blame. I don’t think anyone should be pointing the finger and blaming anyone. Certainly, when it comes to parenting, if I’ve experienced some form of pain and suffering because of the pain and suffering that perhaps my father or parents suffered. I’m gonna make sure I break that cycle so that I don’t pass it on.”

How Prince Harry Plans to Parent Differently Than Prince Charles: I’m Breaking ‘the Cycle’ — Prince Harry and Prince Charles. Shutterstock (2)

The England native noted that “a lot of genetic pain and suffering gets passed on anyway,” adding, “As parents, we should try and make sure we’re doing the most we can. Like, ‘That happened to me. I’m gonna make sure that doesn’t happen to you.’”

While this has been “hard” for Harry, he credits his own “awareness” of his father’s life with helping him raise his and Meghan Markle’s son differently. (The Suits alum, 39, is currently pregnant with their second child.)

“Suddenly, I started to piece it all together,” the duke told Shepard, 46, and his cohost, Monica Padman. “OK, so this is where he went to school. I know this about his life. I also know that it’s connected to his parents, so that means that he’s treating me the way that he was treated, which means how can we change that for my kids? Here I am. I now moved my whole family to the U.S. That wasn’t the plan. But sometimes you’ve got to make decisions and put your family first and mental health first.”

He and the former actress announced their step back from their roles as senior royal family members in January 2020, making their exit official in February of the following year. The couple moved to California with their toddler in March 2020 and now live in Montecito.

Earlier this year, Harry and Meghan opened up to CBS about the difficulties they experienced that led to leaving the royal family, including the Los Angeles native’s battle with suicidal thoughts during her first pregnancy. Charles, 72, “may never forgive” his son for the bombshell March interview, a source exclusively told Us Weekly earlier this month.

“[That] hasn’t gone down well with Elizabeth,” the insider explained. “She feels that he’s putting his pride before the best interest of the monarchy. She has enough on her plate dealing with the loss of her husband, [Prince Philip]. It’s drama she can do without.”

Harry encouraged podcast listeners on Thursday to “learn from” the “bad stuff that happens” to them in life, saying, “The universe is basically saying to you, ‘I’m gonna school you.’ What can you take from each of those moments?”