Prince William, the future king of the United Kingdom, has said nothing publicly about his brother Harry’s decision to return home. Not on social media. Not through a royal spokesperson. Not a word.Since last week, the British media have exploded into a speculative frenzy about where prince Harry and his family will live, what he will do and, most of all, whether he will reconcile with his estranged brother. William’s silence hangs heavy over the monarchy he will eventually inherit.The heir to the throne has worked for years to show that he will be a new kind of monarch, more in tune with the modern world than his father, king Charles, or late grandmother, queen Elizabeth II, could be. In public campaigns, he has encouraged men, especially, to confront mental health challenges, to abandon the “stiff upper lip” that is so typically British and to be open to the idea of seeking therapy.This year, he let it be known that he maintains a “quiet faith” and wants to form “a strong and meaningful bond” with the Church of England when he is king.“Forgiveness is at the heart of Christian morality,” royal historian Ed Owens said. “There would be great magnanimity on his part if he would look like the bigger person.”Yet the royal rift between Harry and the sibling he used to call Willy remains wide by all accounts. There is little evidence that anything has been resolved since the pair’s intense clashes in the months before Harry and his wife, Meghan Markle, left Britain, some of which Harry wrote about in his memoir, Spare.“He grabbed me by the collar, ripping my necklace, and he knocked me to the floor,” Harry wrote about one physical altercation with William in 2019, which Harry claimed took place in the cottage he shared with Meghan. “I landed on the dogs’ bowl, which cracked under my back, the pieces cutting into me. I lay there for a moment, dazed, then got to my feet and told him to get out.”Kensington Palace, which represents William and his wife Kate Middleton, has long declined to comment on that accusation, though royal watchers have said that William denies that a physical altercation ever took place. It is clear from what hasn’t happened – any public conversation between the two men since Elizabeth II’s funeral four years ago – that the breach remains deep.In 1997, the brothers endured the tragedy of their mother princess Diana’s death at the age of 36 when her car crashed while paparazzi were chasing it in Paris. William was 15 and Harry 12. In Spare, Harry wrote of the “decade of unrelenting pain” he experienced as he tried to make sense of the loss.Diana with sons William, left, and Harry in 1995 in London. Photograph: Anwar Hussein/Getty “Both William and Harry have to be carrying the trauma from their childhood and that will complicate their reactions to anything,” said Catherine Mayer, the author of Divide and Rule: Royal Women and Their Battles. “It made them unbelievably close, but it also means that the feelings they have for each other are bound to be strong in all sorts of ways.”Stronger, even, than the anger that clearly existed between Harry and his father, Charles, after the former arrived in the United States and aired the British royal family’s dirty laundry in interviews, documentaries and a tell-all book, accusing some in the family of racism and bullying aimed at Meghan.At the time, Buckingham Palace said in a statement that “some recollections may vary”, but that the accusations were being “taken very seriously and will be addressed by the family privately.” The statement also said Harry and Meghan “will always be much loved family members.”Last year Harry met his father for tea at the king’s London residence in what appeared to be the first step toward healing their rift. Last month Charles and queen Camilla privately met Harry, Meghan and their two children, Archie (7) and Lilibet (5), at Highgrove House, Gloucestershire. By all accounts – none of them detailed or specific – the meeting went well.Last week a person familiar with the king’s response to the family’s move back to Britain said that Charles “welcomes the opportunity to see more of the ... family in a private and personal capacity”.No such sentiment was released by anyone close to William. When asked for comment, Kensington Palace said it did not comment on anything related to Harry and Meghan.Since Elizabeth II’s funeral, Harry has only been in the same place as William twice: for his father’s coronation as king in May 2023 and when the brothers attended a memorial service for their uncle, Robert Fellowes, in August 2024. On both occasions, Harry and William did not appear to interact with each other at all.Kate, William, Harry and Meghan at Windsor Castle following the death of queen Elizabeth II in 2022. Photograph: Chris Jackson/Getty Last week people close to Harry and Meghan made it known that the couple were moving back to Britain and had enrolled their children in school there.The explanation offered by The Sun and The Daily Telegraph was simple enough: the exiled prince and his wife wanted to bring their children up in the peace and quiet of the British countryside where Harry has some of his fondest memories.“Harry & Meg Coming Home,” the Sun headline blared. “Royals move back from US to raise kids in UK.”British newspapers reveal Harry and Meghan's return. Photograph: William J Connolly/Getty The family reportedly arrived in Britain on a private plane on Wednesday, though their spokesperson declined to confirm it. At the time of writing, there was no public welcome home or statement of well wishes from Charles or William.The question is how long that silence can last, especially from the Britain’s future king.Now Harry is back, William will be peppered with questions about whether, and when, they might reconnect. Will Harry and Meghan and the children be invited to the British royal family’s Christmas celebrations? Will Harry join William – even as a nonworking royal – at any public events? What about their children, who have spent almost no time together?The answers may depend on how the next few weeks and months unfold. Some royal watchers have predicted that Harry and Meghan will try to keep a low profile at first to minimise confrontations.“What we’re probably going to see is a couple laying relatively low, steadily trying to rebuild their public images,” Owens said. “And doing so discreetly. They’re not coming here for another fight or for more acrimony.”Yet Harry’s presence nearby may end up irritating William, who has had no in-town competition for attention since his brother moved away. Harry is expected to make some public appearances in the coming weeks, including in his role as the founder of the Invictus Games, a sporting event for wounded military personnel and veterans.Mayer, the author, said William would benefit in the long run from a reconciliation with his brother because Harry and Meghan remain popular with a younger generation that is already wary of the stodgy, old-fashioned royalty that has existed under Charles and Elizabeth II.“If William and Harry were different sorts of people, and they’re not, you might think it perfectly plausible that they would find a way to mend fences for the sake of the monarchy,” she said.“But this is not that ideal world,” Mayer said, “and so who knows?”This article originally appeared in The New York Times.