Prince Harry Fights Back: Shutting Down 'Baseless' Rumors About His Father Once and For All

Prince Harry and James Hewitt WPA Pool/Shutterstock; Shutterstock

Prince Harry has addressed the rumors about James Hewitt being his real father during a recent court testimony. The prince, who is currently suing Mirror Group Newspaper Limited for allegedly using unethical practices like phone hacking to obtain information about him, released a written statement on June 6. In the statement, he talked about how being in the public eye has affected his mental health.

"When I was 18 years old and had lost my mother just six years earlier, stories such as the 2002 article titled “Plot to rob the DNA of Harry” felt very damaging and real to me. They were hurtful, mean, and cruel, leaving me to question the motives behind such stories. I couldn't help but wonder if the newspapers were intentionally sowing seeds of doubt in the minds of the public with the aim of ousting me from the Royal Family."

The Duke of Sussex claimed that the author of the article had resorted to using illegal methods of gathering information to advance their story. He also revealed that he had not previously known that his mother had not met Major Hewitt until after his birth, and that he only became aware of this fact in 2014, despite it being common knowledge among the journalists of the Defendants.

The newspaper's publisher has denied any wrongdoing as the case is heard in London's High Court. In May, an apology was issued stating that MGN apologizes unreservedly for instances of UIG and guarantees that such conduct will not happen again. For years, speculation about Harry's parentage has been widespread, with many rumors circulating. Hewitt, who became Diana's riding instructor two years after Harry's birth, denied the rumors during a 2017 interview with Australia's Sunday Night.

"He mentioned that the book's popularity was due to its ability to sell papers and expressed sympathy for Harry's situation. Meanwhile, the co-founder of Archewell shared his thoughts on the public's interest in his memoir, Spare. He even mentioned that Prince Charles himself had made some jokes about it."

Pa was a master storyteller and this particular one was among his finest. His philosophical conclusion was thought-provoking: If a mental patient could be so convinced of his identity, just like Pa was of his own, then it raises some profound questions. Who is to say which one of us is truly sane? Who can be certain that they are not the deluded patient, placated by their loved ones? Who knows if any of us are who we claim to be? Harry found the whole thing rather tiresome and far from amusing. He believed that the media's obsession with this "joke" was a reflection of their own insecurities and the need to ridicule the lives of others, especially those in the public eye.