His experiences growing up as the son of Diana, Princess of Wales, had influenced how he viewed media attention.
He had seen the effects of intense public scrutiny on his mother and had repeatedly spoken about the importance of mental health and emotional well-being.
The birth of Archie and Lilibet gave those concerns a new dimension.
Harry and Meghan were no longer making decisions only for themselves.
They were also deciding what kind of childhood they wanted their children to experience.
For parents who have spent much of their lives in the public eye, protecting children's privacy can become an important priority.
However, the Sussexes' public profile did not disappear after their departure from royal duties.
They continued to participate in media projects, interviews, charitable initiatives, and other public activities.
Their relationship with the royal family also remained a subject of international interest.
In 2021, their televised interview with Oprah Winfrey brought several serious allegations and personal experiences into public discussion.
The interview intensified the already complicated relationship between the couple and the institution.
Harry later published his memoir, Spare, in January 2023.
The book included his perspective on family relationships, his childhood, his experiences within the monarchy, and his disagreements with other members of the royal family.
Its publication attracted widespread attention and created further debate about the future of the relationship between the brothers.
The distance between two brothers
The reported advice before Harry's wedding has often been revisited because of what happened afterward.
William and Harry once appeared to share a particularly close relationship.
They had experienced the loss of their mother together and had grown up under the same intense public attention.
They had also appeared together at numerous official events and supported charitable causes.
But their relationship became strained over time.
Harry's memoir described disagreements involving William, while public appearances suggested that the brothers were no longer as close as they once seemed.
The tension became especially noticeable during major royal events.
Although they appeared at some of the same occasions, there was little indication that their relationship had returned to its earlier closeness.
It is important not to reduce the entire situation to one conversation about Meghan.
The brothers' difficulties developed over many years and involved personal experiences, family expectations, public statements, and competing accounts of events.
The advice attributed to William is interesting because it offers a glimpse into an earlier moment when their relationship still appeared to have more room for private discussion.
At that time, the issue was reportedly whether Harry should slow down before marrying.
Years later, the public conversation had shifted to much larger questions about family unity, royal responsibility, and the future of the monarchy.
Did Harry ever reconsider his decision?
One of the most striking aspects of the story is that Harry and Meghan remained married despite the changes around them.
They became parents, built a home in California, and developed professional and charitable activities outside the traditional royal structure.
Their marriage has continued through years of public criticism, intense attention, and family disagreements.
However, it would be inappropriate to claim that Harry has never had doubts about any part of his decision or that the couple has never experienced difficulties.
The public cannot know everything that happens inside a marriage.
What can be established is that the couple has remained together and continued presenting themselves as a family.
Harry's choice to marry Meghan was a personal decision, and the later challenges of royal life do not automatically mean that the original decision was mistaken.
A marriage and the circumstances surrounding it are two different things.
A couple can remain committed to each other while disagreeing with relatives, changing countries, reconsidering professional goals, and adapting to unexpected responsibilities.
That distinction is especially important when examining the Sussexes' journey.
The question is not simply whether William was right to recommend patience.
It is whether Harry and Meghan were able to build the kind of life they wanted after choosing to marry.
And the answer is more complicated than a single romantic headline.
Part Five: Eight Years Later, What Does Their Story Say About William's Advice?
A marriage that continued through enormous changes
By May 2026, Harry and Meghan had reached their eighth wedding anniversary.
Eight years had passed since the ceremony at St George's Chapel.
During that period, their lives had changed in ways that would have been difficult to predict in 2018.
They had become parents twice.
They had stepped away from their senior royal roles.
They had established a new home in the United States and pursued projects outside the traditional royal structure.
They had also experienced public disagreements with members of the royal family.
Their relationship was no longer simply the romance between a British prince and an American actress.
It had become a story about marriage, parenthood, independence, public identity, and the challenges of creating a private life under international attention.
The couple's continued marriage is an important part of that story.
It shows that the relationship did not end simply because their circumstances became complicated.
But the idea that Harry's decision was one he had never reconsidered should be treated as a romantic interpretation rather than a confirmed statement about his private thoughts.
There is a difference between remaining committed to a marriage and claiming that someone has never questioned a decision during difficult moments.
No outsider can know that distinction with certainty.
The reported UK return adds another chapter
The story has also entered a new phase in 2026.
In August 2026, reports from the Associated Press and other major news organizations said that Harry and Meghan planned to return to the United Kingdom for an extended stay with their children.
The reported arrangement involved a private, non-royal residence outside London, while the family would retain connections to their home in California.
Their children, Archie and Lilibet, were reported to be preparing to attend British schools.
This development was particularly significant because Harry and Meghan had relocated to North America in 2020.
Their planned return did not mean that they were resuming their former roles as senior working royals.
The distinction is essential.
The couple's reported move concerned their family arrangements and personal life, not a confirmed restoration of their previous royal responsibilities.
It also came amid continuing questions about Harry's relationship with his father, King Charles III, and his brother, Prince William.
The reports suggested that the move could provide more opportunities for family contact, although neither Buckingham Palace nor Kensington Palace had publicly confirmed a reconciliation between the brothers.
It would therefore be premature to describe the move as proof that every disagreement has been resolved.
Nevertheless, it represents another significant development in the story.
Harry's life has continued to evolve, just as William's has.
And the family relationships that once seemed relatively straightforward have become much more complicated.
Was William right to tell Harry to wait?
This is perhaps the most interesting question raised by the original headline.
William reportedly believed that Harry should allow more time before making the decision to marry Meghan.
Looking back, the advice can be understood in several ways.
First, William may have been thinking about the practical realities of royal marriage.
Harry was not entering an ordinary partnership.
His future wife would become part of a highly visible family with established expectations and responsibilities.
A longer period of dating could have provided additional opportunities to discuss those realities.
Second, William may have been concerned about the speed at which the relationship developed.
When two people fall deeply in love, it can be tempting to focus on what they feel in the present.
But marriage also involves thinking about the future.
It means discussing family life, professional ambitions, financial responsibilities, personal boundaries, and how to deal with disagreements.