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When making the ‘incredibly sad’ decision to exclude the Duke and Duchess of Sussex from his upcoming summer wedding, the Duke of Westminster, Hugh Grosvenor, took into account the royal discord that marred his sister’s ceremony at the same venue.
Mindful of the tensions surrounding Lady Tamara Grosvenor and Edward van Cutsem’s wedding at Chester Cathedral in 2004, Hugh was ‘very conscious’ and aimed to avoid any similar complications on his own.
A family friend informed DailyMail, ‘Hugh knows how sensitive wedding invitations can be.
Camilla Parker Bowles was invited to his sister’s wedding but was told that she would not be permitted to sit with Prince Charles and would have to sit several rows back. She would also have to arrive separately. This was because Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip were due to attend the ceremony.
A Buckingham Palace courtier was quoted as saying at the time: ‘It may provoke comment on the day, but Her Majesty will also be attending and she is a stickler for protocol.
‘A pew will be set aside for the members of the Royal Family attending, and it would be inappropriate for Mrs Parker Bowles to sit beside Prince Charles since she has no official standing.
‘Even for Mrs Parker Bowles to arrive with the Prince at the event, in the presence of the Queen, would be to confer rights and status upon her that she simply does not have.’
Prince Harry and Meghan’s exclusion from the Duke of Westminster’s wedding comes amid an increasingly bitter royal rift.
Hugh Grosvenor, 32, is to marry Olivia Henson, 30, at Chester Cathedral on June 7. The King, Queen, Prince and Princess of Wales, and Prince George, who is the Duke’s godson, are invited.
The Duke is so close to Harry that he is reportedly godfather to his son, Prince Archie. The Duke, who has an estimated fortune of £10billion, is the King’s godson and had an official role at the coronation in May.
A friend of William and Harry’s told the Sunday Times: ‘It’s incredibly sad it has come to this. Hugh is one of very few close friends of William and Harry’s who has maintained strong bonds and a line of communication with both.’
