Prince Harry's Emotional Tribute to Queen Goes Viral

The moment Prince Harry participated in an emotional tribute to his late grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II, has been praised by fans after footage captured before her state funeral in 2022 has gone viral on social-media site TikTok.

Harry has spoken on a number of occasions about the special bond he shared with his grandmother and how it influenced him throughout his life. In an interview given before the queen's death, Harry said: "We have a really special relationship; we talk about things that she can't talk about with anyone else."

Harry became Elizabeth's fourth grandchild when he was born in 1984, the youngest son of King Charles III (when Prince of Wales) and Princess Diana. He regularly interacted with his grandmother at official events and, after leaving the British Army in 2015, served her as a full-time working royal until his move to the U.S. with Meghan Markle five years later.

When the monarch died at the age of 96 while staying at her Scottish home of Balmoral Castle on September 8, 2022, Harry and Meghan fortuitously happened to be visiting Britain at the time to attend charity events.

Harry flew to Scotland when it was announced that the queen's health was failing, but arrived just as her death was being announced on the news. This set in motion a number of mourning events in the buildup to her state funeral on September 19 in London.

Uploaded to TikTok by user @jona_m_m_13, on June 19, footage from one of the most emotionally charged of these events has gone viral, being viewed almost 200,000 times on the video-sharing platform so far.

Captured during the monarch's lying-in-state, where her coffin was placed at Westminster Hall in London for members of the public to pay their respects, a special ceremony took place; all of the queen's eight grandchildren came together in tribute to honor her.

Harry stood taking a ceremonial guard over the queen's coffin with his older brother, Prince William, together with Princess Anne's two children, Zara Tindall and Peter Phillips; Prince Andrew's daughters, Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie; and Prince Edward's children, Lady Louise Windsor and James, the Earl of Wessex.

The ceremony echoed what is known as the "vigil of the princes." This is a tribute first started by the sons of King George V when he died in 1936. When Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother died in 2002, her four grandsons paid her the same tribute.

For Queen Elizabeth II, two tributes were offered; one by her four children, and another by her grandchildren.

The TikTok clip highlighting Harry's involvement in the touching family moment also includes footage of the prince and his grandmother in a happier time, where she participated in a filmed skit promoting his Invictus Games veterans' sports tournament in 2016.

The post has received in excess of 12,000 likes and numerous comments so far, many of which have praised Harry and his relationship with the queen.

Though the vigil of the queen's grandchildren was a standout moment from the mourning events in the buildup to the state funeral, receiving worldwide press coverage, Harry's involvement did not come without controversy in the British press.

Ahead of his participation, tabloid discussion over whether the prince would be allowed to wear military uniform for the events was widely debated. When Harry stepped down as a working royal, the prince's honorary military patronages were removed and so he was not entitled to appear in uniform.

Many voices defended the prince, who had served his country in active combat as part of the British Army during the war in Afghanistan.

In the end, Harry did appear in uniform, reportedly having been granted permission to do so by King Charles III, who is head of the British armed forces.

James Crawford-Smith is Newsweek's royal reporter, based in London. You can find him on X, formerly Twitter, at @jrcrawfordsmith and read his stories on Newsweek's The Royals Facebook page.

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