Full
text: interviewed in Afghanistan | Full
text: interviewed before departure l Video:
on the front line | Video:
Harry's job | Pictures:
Harry in Helmand | Media
blackout | 'Treated
like the rest' | The
farewell party | British
monarchs who have served
Few serving soldiers enjoy the privilege of learning of their next posting
from the mouth of their ultimate commander-in-chief. Prince Harry heard that
he was bound for Afghanistan from the Queen.
It was at one of those family weekends at Windsor Castle where, among ordinary
folks, the generation gap is bridged by small talk, and polite inquiry as to
how the chosen career is going. But Grandma is also Harry’s ultimate boss,
and she knows more than a thing or two about soldiering.
In a remarkably frank and wideranging interview conducted at Clarence House
before he left for Helmand Province, Harry conceded that she was a
particularly good person to talk about his next career move. “Her knowledge
of the Army is amazing for a grandmother; I suppose it’s slightly her job.”
The Queen, he said, had always been supportive of his desire to serve in a
live theatre so that he could stand man-to-man with his comrades. He clearly
did not want to be one of those gentlemen of England now abed who thought
themselves accursed they were not at Agincourt. Unlike Henry V, Harry had
moments of wishing he was not royal.
The possibility of him serving on the front line has caused much sweat and
pencil-chewing among the professional military top brass. Yet Harry has
always been anxious to gather the same battle scars as his comrades and
avoid the danger of pussyfooting that his superiors might take towards a
potential heir to the throne, who could act as an unusually desirable target
for the enemy.
“I would never want to put someone else’s life in danger when they have to sit
next to the bullet magnet. But if I’m wanted, if I’m needed, then I will
serve my country as I signed up to do,” he said before leaving.
There were still frustrations, like being unable to spread the news beyond his
very closest friends. “I have told the people that I feel would need to know
but other people I don’t really want to put in that position of saying,
‘Right, I’m going’, and then they feel as though they’ve got to keep that
deep down inside. People will be nervous, I think, for me. I hope there will
be a bit of shock or surprise when they find out that I am actually out
there.”
Known in his off-duty moments for the occasional spot of high living and
serious relaxation, Harry recognised that he was not on his way to the world
capital of sensuality.
“It’s no great holiday resort apparently but I really look forward to going
there. It is winter, which is a slight disappointment. It is just going to
be a little bit cold, a bit snowy, but at least we might have a white
Christmas.” What he got instead was a sandy Christmas.
The Queen, in whose name all British servicemen fight, has been as much a
grandmother in this instance as the lady who takes the salute at Trooping
the Colour. She is particularly fond of both William and Harry; she is
thought, like any grandmother, to be occasionally shocked at the younger
brother’s occasional excesses but ultimately to be supportive, especially
since their mother died.
Harry has suggested that the Queen backed his desire to go to Iraq until the
plan was overuled by military chiefs. They may all ultimately answer to her
but she does not interfere in operational affairs and is as good at taking
advice as giving it.
At least the news imparted by Grandma evaporated Harry’s previous frustration
at being grounded from planned service in Iraq, after venting his feelings
that being left behind while his comrades went to war would do neither his
reputation nor his self-esteem any favours at all. In the interview, which
was intended for release after his safe return, Harry described his reaction
on hearing the news of his posting from the Queen: “A bit of excitement, a
bit of phew, I finally get the chance to actually do the soldiering I wanted
to do from ever since I joined.”
The Commander-in-Chief of Britain’s Armed Forces had been wholly supportive of
her grandson’s desire to see active service, Harry said. “We’ve had lots of
talks about it since April, and she was very pro me going then. So I think
she’s relieved that I get the chance to do what I want to do.”
She and everyone else had witnessed Harry’s frustration when told initially
that he would not be leading his troop of 11 men to the front line. “There
was a lot of frustration but, as they say in the Army, ‘Turn to the right
and carry on’.”
When told last year that it would be too dangerous for himself and his men to
go into an active warzone, did he think of quitting?
“I wouldn’t use the word ‘quitting’. It was a case of, ‘I very much feel like
if I’m going to cause this much chaos to a lot of people then maybe I should
bow out’. And not just for my own sake, for everyone else’s sake. It was
something that I thought about but at the same time I was very keen to make
this happen — or hope for the opportunity to arise — and luckily it has.”
What stopped him bowing out, Harry said, was the possibility of a second
chance, dangled before him as a carrot. “I really enjoy the Army. Anyone who
says they don’t enjoy the Army is mad; you can spend a week hating it and
the next week it could be the best thing in the world and the best job you
could ever, ever wish for. It has got so much to offer.”
But the initial refusal to send him towards the muck and bullets still rankled
although he claimed to be philosophical about it at the time.
“It was a case of yeah, well, I haven’t, sort of, won the battle this time;
for numerous reasons I can’t go on operations. I understand that but I will
hang around and hopefully they will use me at some point.”
It would never have happened if Harry had not been a prince. Did he ever wish
that he wasn’t one?
“I wish that quite a lot, actually. William and I have said numerous times
that there’s a lot of opportunities we miss out on, as well as getting a lot
of chances because of who we are. But it was very hard, and I did think that
clearly one of the reasons that I’m not going was the fact of who I am.”
He was well aware at the time of the risk, not only to himself, but to his
men. Within 20 minutes of news breaking that he would not be going, he
gathered his men and explained the decision to them. “And them being the
soldiers that they are said, ‘It’s ridiculous. I would happily be under
fire, be next to you as a troop leader’, all this sort of stuff, as any
troop leader would expect from another soldier. It’s a sort of brotherhood.”
They had a laugh about it, Harry said, and he then had a laugh about it
himself. “They’re all back safe and sound, and didn’t need me anyway. Apparently
it was pretty boring.”
Boring, he acknowledged, was probably what Afghanistan would not be. “It won’t
be risk-free but then I didn’t join the Army thinking I was never going to
go on operations. Nowadays, especially in the world we live in, it has got
to that situation where people join the Army to almost go on operations and
serve their country, to help in the little way that they can. And if that is
spending six months in the Army and then your second six months in
Afghanistan and then for the soldier to sign off after that, well I don’t
see any problem with that at all.”
One the attractions of being posted to Afghanistan, Harry said, was it gave
him the chance to be just a normal person, dressed in the same uniform as
thousands of others, his face anonymous behind scarf and goggles. The
anonymity was fantastic, he said.
Harry was confident — a belief now suddenly perhaps misplaced — that the
secrecy of his posting would prevent him being a danger to his men.
i was told that Harry was in Afghanistan weeks ago and kept quiet about it.
But I am disappointed with him saying that he does not like England. Perhaps he should move elsewhere.
David, Poole,
It's nice that the Prince got a chance to serve in an active role. The secrecy surrounding it makes sense for security and practicality. It would have been hard for him to carry out his job with a herd of media following him around constantly instead of just a single pool reporter.
It's unfortunate that the secret leaked out. Hopefully, the extra attention will remind everyone of the valiant service American, British, Canadian, and Dutch soldiers are providing in the combat areas of Afghanistan. If this keeps up, the Taleban won't get a chance to come back and impose its draconian religious views and cruel anti-women policies.
Jill, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
Can people not see how difficult a situation this is, instead of making insulting remarks? If Harry had not gone he would have been accused of having had special treatment. Now that he has - and anonymously, until the news leaked out - there are silly remarks being made about special treatment again! Naturally the world's press are interested - they probably ghoulishly hope that 'something will go wrong'. Harry seems to be behaving in a normal manner amongst his comrades, and attempting, until the media latched on, to simply fulfill the contract he signed when he joined the army.
Good luck to him, and good luck to the rest of the finest army in the world.
Rosina
London
Rosina Clark, London, UK
Can all the other brave young lads out here be given the same amount of attention? What is the matter with this country when one young man is seen to be deserving of so much more praise than all the others fighting and dying for their country.
sue adams, leeds, uk
The Afghanistan War is nothing but an invasion of a sovereign Country, the Pashtoons will of course carry on battling and I would much rather prefer a pull out than stick Harry on the frontline. It's an absolute disgrace and shame on the Royals for rubber stamping the killing fields that our British Army are involved in.
Superman, Leeds, UK
Hooray, for Harry England and St George!
Grandma, London , United Kingdom
Go Harry!!!!
Proud of You.....
Edie Egan, Middletown N. Y., USA
Amazing how no one put their name to this excellent piece of journalism, perhaps it was penned by a collective and an awkward moment was avoided when it was agreed that no name should come first. Keep up the good work - anonymity prevails.
Douglas Miller, Fulham,