Prince Harry life in pictures as Duke celebrates birthday

Prince Charles and Princess Diana with baby Harry the day after his birth in 1984 Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, has spent his life in the spotlight. First photographed at just one day old, there are few others alive today who have a life so well-documented in the public eye. This Friday, September 15, Harry will celebrate his 39th birthday, and he’s expected to do so mostly in private — gone are the days of royal birthday photo shoots, the Duke and his family opting instead for a quieter life outside the royal fishbowl. However, as Harry and his wife, Meghan Markle, are currently in Düsseldorf, Germany, for the 2023 Invictus Games, the public might get a glimpse of the royal couple, or perhaps even enjoy some more public birthday wishes this year. Meghan has indeed been tipped to have special plans for her husband’s birthday, reportedly planning to mark the occasion in a “meaningful” way. So, as the Royal Family — and royal fans alike — celebrate another year of Prince Harry, Express.co.uk takes a look at his remarkable life, in pictures. Diana and baby Harry on the royal yacht, May 5, 1985 Henry Charles Albert David was born on Saturday, September 15, 1984, at the Lindo Wing of St Mary’s Hospital in Paddington. The second-born son of Charles, Prince of Wales (not King Charles III) and Diana, Princess of Wales, the baby — dubbed ‘Harry’ from a young age — became third in line to the British throne. He was christened on December 21, 1984, at St George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle, by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Robert Runcie. In 1985, the Commonwealth nation of the Seychelles released a stamp depicting Harry with his great-grandmother Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother at his christening. High jinx at Kensington Palace, 1985 A windy day in the garden of Highgrove House in Gloucestershire, 1986 Diana on the school run to Wetherby School in London, April 1990. Diana and her boys on a skiing holiday in Lech, Austria. 1993 Prince Harry spent his early years with his mother, father, and older brother, Prince William, between Kensington Palace in London and Highgrove House in Gloucestershire. By his own account, his early years were happy ones. Writing in his 2023 memoir, Spare, Harry recalled summer days running about the “playground” of Balmoral castle with William, zooming around on quad bikes, and having fish fingers served to them in front of the TV by “footmen carrying trays covered with plates, each topped with a silver dome”. ‘Willy’ and ‘Harold’ — as the brothers refer to one another — appear to have enjoyed a normal, close relationship as brothers in their formative years, with the usual sibling rivalries, albiet tinged with a foreshadowing of future tribulations: “My half of the room was far smaller, less luxurious,” Harry wrote in Spare. “I never asked why. I didn’t care. But I also didn’t need to ask. Two years older than me, Willy was the Heir, whereas I was the Spare.” Outside Westminster Abbey at the funeral of Diana. September 6, 1997 The infamous coffin walk. Prince Philip, William, Charles Spencer, Harry, and Charles Then 12 years old, Prince Harry — and the world — was forever changed on August 31, 1997, when Princess Diana died in a horror car crash in a Paris tunnel. Aged 36, she had divorced Prince Charles one year earlier. Harry recalled the events in hearthbreaking detail in his book, how his father told him: “Darling boy, Mummy’s been in a car crash.” How he “began silently pleasing with Pa, or God, or both: No, no, no”. How, despite his denials, he was told she “didn’t make it”. Harry writes how his young brain blocked out the trauma, how he can’t recall what he said in those moments that would change his life forever, and how blurry and shock-ridden the subsequent days were. One of the most tragic and enduring photographs from the life of Prince Harry will always be him, flanked by his father, uncle, brother and grandfather, walking behind his mother’s coffin. The smallest of the group by a long way — a small, grieving child exposed to the world in his most vulnerable moment. In his bedroom At Eton College, 2003 Prince Harry as Conrade in a masked ball scene from a production of ‘Much Ado about Nothing’ 2003 Father and sons on a ski trip in 2002 As Harry grew into a teenager, attempts were made somewhat to shield him and his brother from the intense public scrutiny that came with their lives, which came with a “deal” with the media not to invade their privacy. As such, his life as an Eton schoolboy was enjoyed, at least in part, away from the public gaze. Images we do have depict a typical young boy enjoying extra-curricular activities, school plays, rugby, and family skiing trips. Harry did, however, lift the lid on life at Eton in his book, describing the “profound shock” of joining the Berkshire college dating back to the 1400s. “Eighteen prime ministers had been moulded in Eton’s classrooms, plus thirty-seven winners of the Victoria Cross. Heaven for brilliant boys, it could thus only be purgatory for one very unbrilliant boy,” he wrote. Harry snapped at a party in 2004 German tabloids in 2005 decrying Prince Harry’s choice of fancy dress In his post-school years as a young adult, the increasingly troubled Harry was frequently pictured partying with friends. While a normal and common pastime for university-aged people in the UK, the Prince, ever scrutinised, often made headlines for appearing inebriated in public and for one particularly ill-chosen fancy dress costume. In Spare, Harry admits to having used cocaine, magic mushrooms and marijuana, a revelation which earned him much criticism. Prince Harry on a 2004 visit to Lesotho, working with a youngster Harry mucks in. Lesotho,2018 The 9 fascinating and intimate secrets of Royal Family life revealed by Prince Harry From the nicknames the family uses to the Queen whipping up a salad dressing, Prince Harry’s new memoir has lifted the lid on royal life. Prince Harry first visited Africa aged 12, when he visited South Africa with his father, setting off a lifelong love of the continent and one which would help him find his focus in life. Harry himself described his experiences in Africa as “life-changing” and “formative”. In Spare, he writes of the “highest compliment he’d ever received” from a friend in Africa: “She said: ‘I think your body was born in Britain, but your soul was born here in Africa’.” Harry explained how, in his early 20s, his friends on the continent told him it was time “give back” to Africa and his attempts to “shine a light” on the plights facing many of the nations. Harry’s work in Africa has since spanned most of his adult life, working on projects in Namibia, Tanzania, South Africa and Botswana. In 2017, he became President of African Parks. Remembrance Sunday service at Kandahar Airfield November 9, 2014, in Afghanistan Harry on his camp bed in his accommodation at FOB Delhi (forward operating base),on January 2, 2008 Harry follows the royal couple at William and Catherine’s 2011 wedding Harry entered the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst in 2005, aged 21, where he was known as Officer Cadet Wales. In 2006, it was announced that Harry’s unit would be deployed in Iraq the following year, sparking an intense debate within palace walls about whether he should be allowed to serve on the front line. Harry was adamant he wanted to serve alongside his fellow soldiers. He said at the time: “If they said ‘no, you can’t go front line’ then I wouldn’t drag my sorry ass through Sandhurst and I wouldn’t be where I am now. The last thing I want to do is have my soldiers away to Iraq or wherever like that and for me to be held back home.” Harry did indeed serve in Iraq and later Afghanistan, despite intelligence concerns that his presence might increase the risk to British troops in already volatile regions. In 2021, Harry described his 10 years in the army as “the happiest times in my life” — but there were duties back home to attend to, too, such as serving as his brother’s best man when he married Kate Middleton in 2011 (though whether or not he really held this title is disputed by Harry). Meghan and Harry at the Invictus Games in Toronto 2017 Meghan and Harry on their wedding day on May 19, 2018 In mid-2016, Harry was photographed with a little-known American actress — Meghan Markle. Upon their first meeting, Harry described Meghan as “heart-attack beautiful” and detailed how their relationship developed in his book, from first meetings, to a magical trip to Botswana, to the terror of making their relationship public and announcing their engagement. Fast forward two years to May 19, 2018, and the world watched as Harry and Meghan made it official in what was described as a “modern” royal wedding at St George’s Cathedral in Windsor. Meghan and Harry present baby Archie to the world on May 8, 2019 Baby Archie with his parents on a tour of South Africa in 2019 The Sussex family Christmas card, 2021 Harry and Meghan announced that they were expecting their first child five months after their wedding. They welcomed their firstborn, Prince Archie Harrison, in May 2019. At the time, the Duke gushed to the media about his son and how proud he was of his wife. ‘It’s been the most amazing experience I could ever have possibly imagined,’ he said. ‘How any woman does what they do is beyond comprehension. “But we’re both absolutely thrilled and so grateful for all the love and support from everybody out there. It’s been amazing.’ In 2021, the family would welcome their second child, Princess Lilibet ‘Lili’ Diana — but by that point, things would look very different for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. The royal couples on the Buckingham Palace balcony on July 10, 2018 After Harry and Meghan’s wedding, unbeknown to the public, relations between the Sussexes and other members of the Royal Family were deteriorating. In November 2018, Harry, Meghan, William and Kate announced their decision to split their households. Then, in April 2019, the couple moved to Frogmore Cottage in Windsor. Finally, in early 2020, it was announced that Harry and Meghan would step back as full-time working members of the Royal Family and, by 2021, they were settled in their new life in America. 5 most explosive moments from Harry & Meghan vol 2: From Queen’s silence to miscarriage Netflix has dropped Harry & Meghan part two, with audiences across the globe eagerly awaiting the new episodes. The last three episodes of their self-titled series marks a shift in gear, speaking about their relationships with the Firm and From Meghan’s heartbreaking miscarriage to the impact Thomas Markle had on the couple, here are the five most explosive moments from Harry & Meghan vol 2. Harry and Meghan during an interview for their bombshell Netflix documentary Harry and Meghan now spend the majority of their time Stateside, focusing on various charitable and profitable endeavours. A series of explosive interviews rocked the royal establishment to its core, with accusations of racism and a lack of support from the family when Meghan in particular was struggling with mental health and suicidal thoughts. Since then, however, the couple have sought to move on, launching various creative and charitable ventures. This week, the pair have been photographed in Germany, for the Invictus Games, Harry’s flagship sporting event for injured veterans, launched in 2016. Happy birthday, Prince Harry!