‘They must do their duty’: Queen Elizabeth ‘wanted William and Harry to go to war’

‘My grandsons have taken my shilling, therefore they must do their duty,’ late monarch claimed to have said

Queen Elizabeth II believed her grandsons Prince Harry and Prince William should both “do their duty” by going to war in Afghanistan, a former head of the British army has said.

It was decided, however, that the risk for the older sibling was “too great” as the heir to the throne, according to General Sir Mike Jackson, who served as chief of the general staff from 2003 until 2006.

But for William’s younger brother Harry, who went on two tours of Afghanistan during the decade he spent in the military, the “risk was acceptable”, he said.