Prince Harry says his tell-all memoir Spare and Netflix series were ‘not about revenge’.
The Duke of Sussex, who celebrates his 41st birthday tomorrow, also believes he didn’t air ‘my dirty laundry in public’.
And he has appeared to have made a thinly veiled swipe at his brother Prince William as he says: ‘You cannot have reconciliation before you have truth.’
Harry made the comments during a visit to Ukraine, just days after a 54-minute reconciliation meeting with his father King Charles III in a bid to rebuild their relationship.
It was the first time the prince had seen his father in 19 months, and although he says the ‘focus really has to be on my dad’ in the next year, he declared his ‘conscience is clear’.
During a sit-down interview with The Guardian in Kyiv, he said: ‘I know that [speaking out] annoys some people and it goes against the narrative.
‘The book? It was a series of corrections to stories already out there. One point of view had been put out and it needed to be corrected.’
He added: ‘I don’t believe that I aired my dirty laundry in public. It was a difficult message, but I did it in the best way possible. My conscience is clear.’
‘It is not about revenge, it is about accountability,’ he says.
Prince Harry says his tell-all memoir Spare and Netflix series were ‘not about revenge’
Prince Harry’s book on display in a book store on January 22, 2023 in Bath, England
Harry also revealed the words of wisdom his wife, Meghan, gave him were to ‘just stick to the truth’.
Harry’s 416-page tome Spare made a series of jawdropping claims and laid bare the rift within the Royal Family.
One accusation aimed at his brother accused William of leaving Harry with visible ‘scrapes and bruises’ after an alleged attack.
He claimed: ‘[William] grabbed me by the collar, ripping my necklace, and he knocked me to the floor.’
It also claimed William teased Harry about his panic attacks, that King Charles put his own interests above his second son and saw Harry reference taking cocaine, marijuana and psychedelic mushrooms and his enjoyment of the TV show Friends.
The Duke of Sussex’s controversial memoir became the UK’s fastest-selling non-fiction book ever after being published by Penguin Random House in January 2023.
It comes after a royal source told the Daily Mail that the past week where Harry spent four days in the UK could be the start of Harry, Meghan and their two children being part of a ‘functioning wider family again’.
Harry and Meghan during their explosive interview with Oprah Winfrey in 2021
King Charles arrives at Clarence House, in London, ahead of a meeting with his son Harry
Prince Harry arrives at Clarence House, London, after his father King Charles
Prince Harry visits a makeshift memorial for Ukrainian and foreign soldiers in Kyiv today
Prince Harry visits a makeshift memorial for Ukrainian and foreign soldiers in Kyiv today
Harry and William are pictured together attending the unveiling of a statue of their mother at The Sunken Garden in Kensington on July 1, 2021
The King is said to be keen to rebuild his relationship with his son and wants to spend time with his grandchildren Archie and Lilibet, who he has not seen for three years.
‘It’s become clear that Harry now regrets some of his actions. He wants to reset his relationship with his family and with the people of the UK’, an insider has said.
‘It’s hard to see him ever coming back to live in Britain but this may be the start of something that at least allows them to be a functioning wider family again.’
It came after Prince Harry’s spokesman said he ‘loved’ being back in the UK and ‘catching up’ with his good causes and friends.
The Duke of Sussex wrapped up his trip with a visit to a charity set up in memory of his mother, one day after reuniting with the King for the first time in 19 months.
His spokesperson gave an upbeat review of the UK tour, saying: ‘He’s obviously loved being back in the UK, catching up with old friends, colleagues and just generally being able to support the incredible work of the causes that mean so much to him.’
The Duke carried out his final engagement on Friday linked to the Diana Award in Central London as he brought his four-day solo trip to a close.
Prince Harry pays tribute to victims killed in recent Russian drone and missile strikes at the site of a heavily damaged apartment building in Kyiv — September 12, 2025
Harry poses for a picture with wounded Ukrainian serviceman Vasyl, 38, at the National Museum of the History of Ukraine in the Second World War — September 12, 2025
Harry is met at the train station in Kyiv as he arrived in Ukraine at the invitation of Zelensky’s government — September 12, 2025
Harry and Prime Minister of Ukraine Yulia Svyrydenko visit the headquarters of Ukrainian Cabinet of Ministers, which was damaged during a recent missile and drone attack — September 12, 2025
In May after losing his High Court battle with the Home Office, Harry himself told the BBC that he would ‘would love a reconciliation’ with the Royal Family, adding: ‘There‘s no point continuing to fight any more, life is precious’.
The King reportedly begged his warring sons ‘not to make his final years a misery’ during an anguishing meeting at Windsor Castle in 2023, but while Charles engaged with his son this week the Prince of Wales refused despite being just a few miles apart at one point.
Harry is in Kyiv as part of his work for the Invictus Games and to support Ukraine’s tens of thousands of injured veterans.
The Duke of Sussex flew to Poland and then caught a train to the Ukrainian capital, arriving on Friday morning.
