He may be the second-born son of the next in line for the Crown, but Prince Harry couldn't rate a front-row seat at the recent Commonwealth Day event at Westminster Abbey. As he and Meghan Markle took the second tier of seats, they were left staring at the backs of the heads of the higher-ranking royals.
According to protocol, the Royals were seated in order of rank, with Queen Elizabeth having the most prestigious position, on the aisle.
Next to her was Prince Charles, the heir-apparent to the throne. Next to him, of course, was his wife Camilla.
Then came Prince William, the Duke of Cambridge and next-in-line to the Throne, after his father. Seated next to William was his beautiful and very pregnant bride, Kate, Duchess of Cambridge.
Noticeably absent was the Duke of Edinburgh, Prince Philip, who has retired from attending public events.
Always knowing that it was highly unlikely he would ever become King, Harry must be used to playing second fiddle to older brother William. And his and his fiancée's lower-ranking seats at this event were just the most recent of the constant reminders that his role is substantially less important than that of William's.
Still, it must have hurt his ego a little bit having to relegate his bride-to-be to the row behind two others who are only members of the family by marriage, the Duchess of Cornwall, Camilla and the Duchess of Cambridge, Kate. He's still in the phase when impressing his lady love is still a very real consideration so it must not have been easy to have had to endure such a blatant "snub."
He is immensely proud of his lovely Meghan and it must have been tough to see her hidden behind the gigantic hats of the ladies in front of them.
But, with Royal rules and protocol, that's just the way it is. Harry is now fifth in line to the throne so he is quite a ways down in the rankings. In April, when William and Kate's third child arrives, he'll move down another notch.
Don't give it a second thought, Harry, you're still "Number One" with your fans!
To see more of the exciting images from the Commonwealth Days event, watch the video, below
