At the Invictus Games, Prince Harry revealed his eldest son’s unexpected interest in landmines, prompting a mixed reaction from royal enthusiasts.
In a frank discussion, the father-of-two recounted a “very interesting conversation” with his five year old son, Prince Archie, who stayed back in California while the Invictus Games took place.
Harry and Meghan Markle travelled to Vancouver for the 2025 Winter Invictus Games but the duchess has not left to go back home to Montecito to be with their children, the Express reports.
Harry shared: “Archie was asking about landmines, so I was talking about how some of these guys [Invictus Games participants] were blown up.
“I think IEDs [improvised explosive devices] are probably a bit too much at this point, but I found myself talking to him about mines when he was 5 years old.”
Royal followers have voiced their opinions on social media regarding Harry’s open conversation. One commented: “I refused to believe that Archie asked about land mines.”
Another pondered the nature of the dialogue: “What 5 year old even knows about land mines? ” A third expressed skepticism: “Show me a 5 year old that would instigate a conversation about land mines? ”
Yet another remarked: “That kid is advanced yo. Crocodile as a first word…getting a waffle maker and camera…now he’s taking up landmine issues.”
Nonetheless, some understood why Harry might bring up such a topic, considering his presence at the Invictus Games, an event for military veterans.
A spectator was impressed by Prince Harry’s method of teaching kids about their forebears and believes it could inspire little Archie to take up charitable causes in the future.
The comment was: “That’s the best way to teach kids about their ancestors and it also served the purpose of possibly inspiring in little Archie an interest in taking up the cause someday. Very nice conversation to be having at #InvictusGames2025.”
The discussion revolved around how Prince Archie’s curiosity around amputees and landmines, areas that Prince Harry works with through the HALO Trust, led to him watching videos of his grandmother, Princess Diana, in action.
Harry shared: “Interestingly, it gave me a chance to talk about my mum, his grandma, which I didn’t even really consider,” referring to the organic way in which he could engage Archie with his mother’s enduring legacy.
He added: “That became the outcome of the story for him. He wanted to see videos and photographs of his Grandma Diana out doing her thing for landmines all those years ago.”
Continuing Princess Diana’s campaign against landmines, twenty-two years after her landmark visit to Angola, Prince Harry walked through a cleared minefield, echoing his mother’s iconic efforts.
In September 2019, he visited a Halo Trust mine site in Angola, donning similar protective gear to what his mother wore during her advocacy trip in 1997.
A fan on X has expressed delight that Archie is learning about Princess Diana, commenting: “Isn’t this absolutely fantastic. They are growing up knowing their grandmother. Her work. Who she was. They are embracing her. Her legacy. They will know. She is part of their lives.”