Meghan Markle will not attend Prince Philip's funeral but Prince Harry plans to palace says
Buckingham Palace officials revealed the funeral will be held April 17 at Windsor Castle
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Meghan Markle will not be attending Prince Philip's funeral alongside her husband, Prince Harry, who plans to attend.
On Saturday, one day after the Duke of Edinburgh's death, Buckingham Palace officials announced a private funeral will be held at Windsor Castle on April 17.
The palace said Philip took part in planning his funeral and the focus on family was in accordance with his wishes. The 99-year-old duke died at the age of 99.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Prince Harry, who stepped away from royal duties last year and now lives in California, will attend the service along with other members of the royal family. His wife, Meghan Markle, who is pregnant, has been advised by her doctor not to attend.
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Prince Harry and Meghan Markle announced their decision to step back as senior members of the British royal family last year and have since relocated to California, where they live with their son, Archie. (Reuters)
Harry's attendance will mark the first time he's reunited with his British royal family members since he and his wife did a viral interview with Oprah Winfrey.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}During the two-hour CBS special, Harry revealed that his relationships with his father, Prince Charles, 72, and his older brother, Prince William, have ruptured.
Markle described feeling so isolated and miserable inside the royal family that she had suicidal thoughts. The Duchess of Sussex also alleged that a member of the royal family had "concerns" about the color of her unborn child’s skin. The family member was not Queen Elizabeth II or her husband Prince Philip, according to Harry, sparking a flurry of speculation about who it could be.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Harry told Winfrey the royal family cut him off financially at the start of 2020 after announcing plans to step back from his roles. But he was able to afford security for his family because of the money his late mother Princess Diana left behind.
Prince Philip's funeral will mark the first time Harry will reunite with his family in the United Kingdom following the airing of his and Meghan Markle's two-hour sit-down with Oprah Winfrey. (Phil Harris - WPA Pool/Getty Images)
Sources told Us Weekly that William was "struggling" to hold back after the interview and wants to publicly share his side of the story.
When confronted by reporters shortly after the special aired, William said that the royals are "very much not a racist family." He added that, at the time, he had not yet spoken to Harry about the contents of the interview. Gayle King then reported that the brothers have since spoken, but conversations were "not productive."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}As for the funeral service, palace officials said the ceremony would be conducted strictly in line with government COVID-19 guidelines, which restrict the number of people attending funerals. They declined to say whether the royal family would be required to wear masks.
Prince Harry revealed in an interview back in February that he kept in touch with his grandfather and grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II, over Zoom. The Duke of Edinburgh died Friday at the age of 99. (Getty Images)
Funeral details were released Saturday hours after military teams across the U.K. and on ships at sea fired 41-gun salutes to mark the death of the duke, honoring the former naval officer whom they considered one of their own.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Batteries in London, Edinburgh, Cardiff and Belfast — the capitals of the four nations that make up the United Kingdom — as well as other cities around the U.K. and the Mediterranean outpost of Gibraltar fired the volleys at one-minute intervals beginning at midday. Ships including the HMS Montrose, a frigate patrolling the Persian Gulf, offered their own salutes.
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"It is with deep sorrow that Her Majesty The Queen has announced the death of her beloved husband, His Royal Highness The Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. His Royal Highness passed away peacefully this morning at Windsor Castle," Buckingham Palace's statement Friday read.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}In this Aug. 1951 file photo, Britain's Queen Elizabeth II, then Princess Elizabeth, stands with her husband Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, and their children Prince Charles and Princess Anne at Clarence House, the royal couple's London residence. Philip's funeral will be held on April 17 at Windsor Castle in a family service that will be closed to the public. (AP Photo/Eddie Worth)
On Feb. 16, Philip was admitted to a London hospital after feeling ill. On March 3, he underwent a procedure for a pre-existing heart condition at St. Bartholomew’s Hospital before being transferred back to King Edward VII hospital on March 5 and ultimately released home on March 16.
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He is the longest-serving royal consort in British history. He and the queen have four children, eight grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Fox News' Stephanie Nolasco and The Associated Press contributed to this report.