Prince Harry said Kensington Palace was 'happy to lie to protect' Prince William against reports he bullied him and Meghan Markle

• Prince Harry said Kensington Palace lied to protect Prince William against bullying claims.
• He said the palace issued a statement without his knowledge denying rumors William bullied him and Meghan Markle.

Prince Harry claimed that Kensington Palace was "happy to lie to protect" Prince William against accusations that he bullied him and Meghan Markle.

On Thursday, Netflix released Volume II of "Harry & Meghan," a docuseries about the Duke and Duchess of Sussex's romance and experience with the royal family.

In episode five, Harry, 38, touches on the reported rift between himself and his older brother. He discusses how a "wedge" was driven between himself and William during crisis talks held at Sandringham House, one of the royal residences, in January 2020.

The purpose of the meeting, which Harry said was attended by himself, William, then-Prince Charles, and the Queen, was to discuss the future of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex's role in the royal family. It came after Harry and Meghan had announced they were stepping back from the royal family.

Shortly after he left Sandringham, The Times of London reported that he and Meghan had partly decided to step back from the royal institution because of their relationship with William.

"A story came out saying that part of the reason why Meghan and I were leaving was because William had bullied us out," Harry said.

He said that he was then made aware a joint statement had been issued by Kensington Palace with his and William's name on it "squashing" and denying the report.

The docuseries subsequently showed news reports from the time that called the statement a "sign of public unity."

However, Harry said no one had asked his permission to put his name on the statement. "I couldn't believe it," he said. After he became aware of the statement, he said that he called Meghan to tell her what had happened.

"She burst into floods of tears," Harry said. "Within four hours, they were happy to lie to protect my brother and yet for three years, they were never willing to tell the truth to protect us."

Kensington Palace and Buckingham Palace did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.

The docuseries started with the written statement: "Members of the royal family declined to comment on the content within this series."