Why Prince Philip, The Queen Did Things Differently For Andrew Because Of Charles

Prince Philip and Queen Elizabeth II realized early on that there’s one thing that had a harmful effect on Prince Charles. This is why the royal couple decided to do things differently with Prince Andrew.

In the book “Andrew: The Playboy Prince,” royal author Andrew Morton said that Prince Charles and Prince Andrew had very different upbringing even though they have the same parents. The age gap between the royal siblings is also quite huge.

“The Queen and Prince Philip had firmly decided that Andrew should not be in the public eye quite so much as Anne and Charles,” Morton said. “They felt the excessive publicity had a harmful effect, particularly on Prince Charles who was by nature a shy youngster,” he said.

In his book “William And Catherine,” Morton also discussed Prince Charles’ emotionally distant upbringing. He said that the image of the young prince had a lasting effect on Princess Diana.

Back in 1954, the Queen returned to London after her longest-ever tour of the Commonwealth. After not seeing Prince Charles and Princess Anne for months, the Queen shook her eldest child’s hand instead of hugging him.

“That image was to have a lasting effect on Diana, Princess of Wales,” Morton said. “As she began to find her way inside the Royal Family, she resolved that her own children would never suffer such emotional remoteness. It set William’s (and, later, Harry’s) upbringing on a trajectory that fused, sometimes uncomfortably, the traditional royal stiff upper lip with behavior that was informal, relaxed, and approachable.”

In the book “The Duchess: The Untold Story,” royal biographer Penny Junor also shed some light on Prince Charles’ difficult upbringing. She said that Prince Charles was seen as a disappointment by his parents because he was small, shy, sensitive and easily bullied.

Prince Philip, on the other hand, was his eldest son’s exact opposite. The Duke of Edinburgh was known to reduce grown men to tears with his cutting remarks and bullying attitude. As such, Prince Philip and Prince Charles didn’t really get along well with each other.