Prince Harry says fatherhood has given him 'new focus and goal in life' as he speaks of loss of his mother
The Duke of Sussex has spoken of how his three-day-old son Archie has “given him a new focus and goal”, teaching him the "miracle" of new life after the challenges he faced following the loss of his mother.
The Duke, who was in The Hague for the launch of the one year countdown to the Invictus Games, told of his pleasure in knowing his baby had made "a lot of people happy", saying he was still "very quiet" at just a few days old.
Having left Archie at home in Windsor with the Duchess to return for one day of work, he spoke of the joy his baby son has brought but advised a fellow father-to-be to learn his lessons and not plan too much after the baby’s arrival.
During a bike ride around the Zuiderpark, the Duke had a candid conversation with former soldier Dennis van der Stroom, 31, about mental health and parenting, speaking poignantly of the loss of Diana, Princess of Wales.
Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor was born on Monday morning, with the Duke appearing to abandon the idea of paternity leave with one engagement today another already announced for Tuesday.
“Above all, he said he was just amazed by the miracles in the world, and how his child has made a lot of people happy," said Mr Van der Stroom.
“He also told me he’s really happy that his son is so far very quiet.
“But he also told me not to make too many plans and that there’s no way you can plan for when the baby arrives.”
The Invictus athlete, who served in the army from 2006 until 2011, described his conversation with the Duke as “amazing and emotional”.
“At a certain moment, we just got connected on this level,” he said.
“We talked about how my wife, Mireille, is 20 weeks pregnant with our first child, a girl, and he told me how special it was that his son has just been born.
“Harry talked about how having a small child was his new focus and new goal and I told him how a couple of months ago, I was struggling with my mental health but my wife’s pregnancy has given me a goal."
Mr van der Stroom was a Corporal First Class and served on operations in Uruzgan, Afghanistan.
In 2014 his mother, Marion, died aged 58 from chronic lung disease, and in 2015 he was diagnosed with PTSD, triggering what he described as a “domino effect” of mental health issues.
“I told Harry about my mother and we talked about our shared experience of missing a mum,” he said.
“He said missing a mother is like missing some kind of security, how you need that as a son and it falls away when you lose your mother.”
The Duke, who had pretended to prop his eyes open with tiredness as he arrived at a sports stadium in The Hague, will travel home with a new soft rattle toy, a stuffed bird, some newborn socks with “I love Daddy” written on them, and a special Invictus Games babygrow for Archie.
His branded jacket was embroidered with the word "Daddy”. Chatting to a friend in the arena, he discussed how fatherhood was the “best thing he will ever do”.
JJ Chalmers, a former Invictus star and broadcaster who has become a friend of the Prince, disclosed: “He said it’s amazing but it’s hard work. He said that [Archie] slept for the first 24 hours like all babies do...and then he woke up.”
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