Prince Harry has shared a deeply personal insight into his royal upbringing, opening up about the exact moment he realised the job and role mapped out for him simply wasn’t what he wanted.

The Duke of Sussex, 41, was speaking at the InterEdge Summit at Melbourne Park on Thursday during his latest trip to Australia with Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, when he made the candid admission.

In his speech, Harry reflected on growing up within the monarchy. He didn’t hold back as he spoke honestly about how he truly felt about being a prince.

Prince Harry shares why he ‘didn’t want’ royal job

Harry revealed that everything changed for him after the devastating loss of his mum, Princess Diana, when he was just 12 years old.

He said during the speech: “After my mum died just before my 13th birthday, I was like: ‘I don’t want this job. I don’t want this role, wherever this is headed, I don’t like it.’”

He went on to explain how strongly he felt at the time, adding: “It killed my mum, and I was very much against it. I stuck my head in the sand for years and years.

“Eventually I realised, well, hang on, if there was somebody else in this position, how would they be making the most of this platform and this ability and the resources that come with it to make a difference in the world?

“And also, what would my mum want me to do? And that really changed my own perspective.”

When did Harry and Meghan quit royal duties?

Of course, Harry and Meghan famously stepped back as senior working royals in early 2020. It was a move that sent shockwaves around the world at the time.

The couple later relocated to the United States. They now live in California with their two children, Archie, six, and Lilibet, four.

It killed my mum, and I was very much against it.

Harry has since spoken warmly about his life across the pond, previously suggesting it’s the path his mum would have wanted for him.

Speaking at The New York Times Dealbook Summit in 2024, he said: “I very much enjoy living here and bringing my kids up here. It’s a part of my life that I never thought I was going to live.

“It’s the life that my mum wanted for me. I’m able to do things with my kids I undoubtedly wouldn’t be able to do in the UK. That is a fantastic opportunity and I’m hugely grateful for that.”

‘I don’t want to be doing this’

This isn’t the first time Harry has spoken openly about struggling with royal life.

During a 2021 appearance on Dax Shepard’s Armchair Expert podcast, he admitted those feelings had been building for years.

“It’s the job right? Grin and bear it, get on with it. In my early 20s, it was a case of, I don’t want this job.

“I don’t want to be here, I don’t want to be doing this, look what it did to my mum. How am I ever going to settle down, have a wife and a family when I know, that it’s going to happen again?

“Because I know, I’ve seen behind the curtain. I’ve seen the business model. I know how this operation runs and how it works, and I don’t want to be a part of this.”

In sharing these reflections once again, Harry has given a clearer picture of the internal conflict he faced for years, and why ultimately he chose a very different path for himself and his family.