Prince Harry gave a big shout-out to military personnel and veterans in a virtual appearance at the 17th Annual Stand Up for Heroes benefit Monday evening.
The event celebrated servicemen and the Duke of Sussex, 39, who wore his own military medals in a video — just months after he was banned from donning his uniform at his father King Charles’ coronation.
His speech also took place on the same day that Charles, 74, delivered his first King’s Speech to Parliament in the UK.
In his message, Harry was dressed to the nines in a crisp suit and his medallions.
Three of his British army ribbons were presented to him by his late grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II. His other badge was of a Royal British Legion poppy.
Harry served in the army for 10 years, and underwent two tours in Afghanistan.
In his hilarious monologue, the Invictus Games founder joked about his ginger hair and sardonically quipped about never being criticized.
“Due to the shockingly low representation of gingers last year, and out of respect for my fellow endangered species, here I am, reporting for duty,” he laughed. “As someone who never gets scrutinized, I haven’t even had to prepare much.”
“But out of an abundance of caution, I have been working on this particular act for quite some time and everyone I know tells me it’s perfect. And no, these aren’t people who just tell me what I want to hear, these are people like my finance manager, my lawyer, and of course, my reiki healer,” Harry teased.
The father of two then got a little more serious later on in his speech, commending the army community.
“I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, service is what happens in the quiet and the chaos,” he said. “And whether we are wearing the uniform or not, we must continue to uphold the values we learned side by side on the base, on the drill square and on the battlefield.”
He concluded: “Values of service, values of honor and integrity and values of togetherness and solidarity.”
In May, Charles was formally crowned as monarch of England and the Commonwealth realms.
Controversy erupted at the time over whether Harry would be able to sport his military uniform for the illustrious event or not.
Harry — who was snubbed with seating at his father’s coronation and was demoted to sitting in the third row — wore a simple black morning suit for the day.
He was also not allowed to wear his military uniform to the Queen’s funeral last September. The reason for this has been widely attributed to the fact that he is no longer a senior working member of the royal family.
However, he did wear the outfit at the Queen’s vigil alongside brother Prince William and their cousins.
Harry and his wife, Meghan Markle, moved to California in 2020.
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