The Real Crown – Inside the House of Windsor: How accurate is the new royal documentary?
A new five-part documentary telling the history of the House of Windsor has been released on ITVX and makes a number of claims about the royal family.
The documentary titled The real crown: In the house of WindsorIt claims to be a behind-the-scenes story of the “life, love, scandals, trials and tribulations” of the royal family.
Speaking to former members of the royal household and royal experts, as well as rarely seen footage, the documentary claims to show the major challenges the late Queen Elizabeth II faced during her reign.
The documentary promises a “rare glimpse” into the late Queen’s “personal experience in navigating the events that shaped the fate of her family and the history of the United Kingdom”.
Read more to learn the documentary’s biggest claims:
The risk to Harry’s life from the war was deemed “acceptable” by the late Queen
The voiceover describes when Prince Harry joined the forces in Afghanistan and explains that the late Queen first had to make a difficult decision about whether to send Harry or William.
The decision was discussed at a meeting between the late Queen and General Sir Mike Jackson, the former chief of the British Army.
Prince Harry served 10 years in the British Army
(Getty Images)
Jackson told the camera: “She was very clear. She said: ‘My grandchildren took my shilling, so they must do their duty.’ And that was it. But it was decided that William, as heir to the heir, was too much of a risk. But for his younger brother, the risk was acceptable.”
While The Independent Buckingham Palace for comment, it is often expected that the heir’s brother would join the military via the future monarch.
William and his uncle Earl Spencer tell Prince Harry to ‘slow down’ with Meghan Markle.
In the first episode of the documentary, the voiceover narrates that while Prince Harry and Meghan Markle were courting each other, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, the Duke of Sussex was told to by his brother Prince William and uncle Charles Spencer “get slower”.
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Neither Buckingham Palace nor the Prince of Wales have confirmed the comments. However, Prince Harry claims in his book spare part that William allegedly urged him not to marry Meghan and expressed his disapproval for the speed at which their relationship was traveling.
The late Queen’s decision to strip the Duke of York of HRH and military titles after he settled a lawsuit over alleged sexual abuse was described in the documentary as her “final gesture of self-sacrifice”.
The voiceover says: “And now the Queen has stripped Andrew of his HRH title. A final gesture of self-sacrifice.”
Prince Andrew has been accused of sexual abuse by Virginia Giuffre, who claims she was trafficked by convicted sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein. The Duke has vehemently denied the allegations, claiming he never met Giuffre. The Queen made the decision for Andrew to step down from all royal duties.
The Independent has reached out to Buckingham Palace for comment.
Michael Fagan lost his sandals on the roof of Buckingham Palace
One of the more humorous parts of the series is the interview with Michael Fagan, the man who twice broke into Buckingham Palace undetected in 1982 and found himself barefoot in the Queen’s bedroom.
Michael Fagan famously broke into Buckingham Palace in 1982
(ITV)
In the third episode of the series, Fagan visits Buckingham Palace and describes how he managed to pull off one of the most famous burglaries in history.
He jokes to the camera that he lost his sandals on the roof of Buckingham Palace and that his hands were covered in tar after climbing up the drainpipe.
said Fagan The Independentst in 2020: “Two years later I got my sandals back from the security guard. ‘These are Michael’s sandals, we found them on the roof,’ they said.”
While the Queen never publicly addressed the incident, it was widely reported at the time that Buckingham Palace was stepping up its security following the event.
The real crown: In the house of Windsor is now available on ITVX.
