For various reasons, I receive Tom Sykes’ Royalist Substack newsletters and updates. While Sykes was kicked out of the royal rota WhatsApp (much to his chagrin), he still has “sources” in various royal camps, mostly in Prince William’s camp. Well, in his latest newsletter, Sykes told a long-winded story about one of his readers who claimed to be a member of the Invictus and veterans community. This person claimed to have attended the Invictus Games in Orlando in 2016 and back then, the Invictus brochures “credited Queen Elizabeth II, now-King Charles, William and Catherine, the Ministry of Defence, Ed Lane Fox, Sir Keith Mills, and Harry with creating the Games.” When this person’s daughter went to an Invictus games years later, “she was told there was no money for veterans, yet there were even more empty seats and, in their view, a much greater emphasis on Harry and Meghan alongside government funding.” Of course, Sykes takes this all as gospel. Here’s the part of Sykes’ column I wanted to discuss:
… In their opinion, Invictus needs to go back to where it began. They pointed out that the entire British royal family helped start it and supported it for a time, but that after Harry and Meghan left the family, the organization changed.
They described the current version of Invictus as a mess and said they believe it has become a scam, no longer truly centered on the heroes it was created for. They argued Harry could be “out there every month raising money for the Games,” and said the veterans deserve better.
They emphasized that no one other than the veterans should be benefiting or being showcased, and while they still donate to the Wounded Warrior Project and local veterans’ causes, they no longer donate to Invictus.
I found the account fascinating, because it comes from someone who clearly believes deeply in the cause and values behind Invictus, but who also feels we have reached a point where, how can I put this, the personalities are getting in the way of the principles.
I do think some very tough decisions are going to have to be made about Invictus. I pray it can get through to Birmingham in 2027, but I find it very hard to imagine Harry still leading this charity into 2029 or 2031.
At some point it just becomes untenable. He and Meghan are now such divisive figures, and this reader makes a very valid point: Invictus was set up as a project endorsed by the British royal family, and it is now run by someone who has very publicly and very deliberately tried to damage and undermine that family.
That leaves many supporters feeling conflicted, much as they did over Sentebale. Tom Bower’s reporting on Sophie Chandauka captured some of that tension, with her point being that even if Harry brings in money, people can still feel uncomfortable if that money was raised through a book attacking a family they admire and love. It puts organizations and individuals in a very difficult position.
“How can anyone support Invictus if Invictus doesn’t slavish support the left-behind Windsors?!?” My point in drawing the connection between Sykes and Prince William’s camp is to underline the fact that William is coming for Invictus. We’ve suspected as much in recent years, especially after William’s allies used Sophie Chandauka to ruin Sentebale. William’s campaign to scream, cry and throw up about Invictus will ramp up in the coming year, as Birmingham is set to host the games in the summer of 2027. The campaign isn’t centered on destroying Invictus per se, it’s about getting Prince Harry to “step down” so that Invictus can have “another royal patron.” Richard Eden spelled that out last year as well – that William believes he can and should “take over” Invictus. I hope this serves as a heads-up to Harry and everyone within Invictus that they need to keep their eye on all of these unhinged machinations. And don’t forget Tom Bower’s profoundly offensive attempt to smear Invictus too – they really have ramped up this campaign.
Photos courtesy of Cover Images.
