Since the release of Prince Harry’s explosive new memoir, Spare, the royal has shared a candid insight into his romantic past.
Prior to finding love with Meghan, Prince Harry was previously linked to the likes of Cressida Bonas, Caroline Flack and Chelsy Davy.
If you’ve forgotten the many names romantically linked to Harry, then watch this video to refresh your memory.
Young loves Prince Harry and Chelsy Davy were seen together in the public eye for a total of seven years – and it was long enough for rumours of a royal engagement to spark.
The lovebirds started dating in 2004 after crossing paths in Cape Town during Prince Harry’s gap year.
Their romance continued to blossom under the interest of the public, with Chelsy attending Prince Charles’ 60th birthday and even meeting the late Queen at a society wedding. However, after an on-off romance, things sadly came to an end in 2011 after Chelsy struggled with being in the royal spotlight.
Speaking to The Times, Chelsy admitted she “couldn’t cope” with the intense scrutiny their romance received. “It was so full-on: crazy and scary and uncomfortable,” she explained.
“I found it very difficult when it was bad. I couldn’t cope… I was trying to be a normal kid, and it was horrible.” Chelsy also revealed that she retreated to her native Zimbabwe to handle the breakup in 2010, adding: “It was nuts. That’s also why I wanted to go back to Africa. Now it’s calm, it’s fine.”
Speaking about why their romance fizzled out, Harry penned in his memoir: “I cherished Chels’s carefree and authentic spirit. She never worried about what other people thought. She wore short skirts and high boots, danced with abandon, drank as much tequila as I did, and I cherished all those things about her… but I couldn’t help worrying how Granny might feel about them.”
He added: “And the last thing I wanted was for Chels to change and accommodate them… I [didn’t] know if Chels could handle it.”
Touching on Chelsy’s experience with the paparazzi, the Duke revealed: “They were now just peddling fantasies, phantasms, while physically stalking me and harassing me and everyone in my inner circle.”
Recalling the time Chelsy found a tracking device on her car, Harry went on to say: “When she was back in Cape Town she phoned me and said people were tailing her everywhere and it was driving her crazy… She was freaking out.
“I talked it over with Marko, who advised me to ask Chels’s brother to check the underside of the car. Sure enough: tracking device.”
According to Harry, the lovebirds had “no choice” but to call it quits. “We had all the same problems, nothing had been solved. Also, Chels wanted to travel, have fun and be young, but I was once again on a path to war.
“I’d soon be shipping off. If we stayed together, we’d be lucky to see each other a handful of times over the next two years, and that was no kind of relationship… Goodbye Chels.”
Despite going their separate ways, Harry and Chelsy have remained on good terms. The jewellery designer, 37, even made an appearance at Prince Harry and Meghan’s royal wedding in 2018. Touching on their bond, Chelsy revealed: “I think we will always be good friends.”
Chelsy has since found love with hotelier Sam Cutmore-Scott. The duo tied the knot in May 2022, five months after welcoming their first child, a baby boy called Leo.
