Prince Harry and Prince William Don't Interact at Father King Charles' Coronation

It was barely a royal reunion for the Duke of Sussex and the Prince of Wales, who were last seen together at the state funeral of Queen Elizabeth in September

Prince William and Prince Harry did not appear to cross paths at King Charles' coronation.

The brothers seemingly didn't interact at the King's crowning ceremony at Westminster Abbey on Saturday. The Prince of Wales, 40, and the Duke of Sussex, 38, did not sit together during the church service, which saw King Charles and Queen Camilla crowned by the Archbishop of Canterbury.

Prince William arrived at the historic event with wife Kate Middleton. The pair wore formal robes and mantels for the historic occasion at the request of King Charles and Queen Camilla. William wore the ceremonial dress uniform of the Welsh Guards.

And despite not appearing to speak to his older brother at the historic event, Prince Harry was pictured smiling from ear to ear. He wore a morning suit for the occasion. (PEOPLE understands Harry was requested to wear a morning suit and didn't make any specific asks about his outfit.)

Harry also wore his Afghanistan service medal as well as Golden Jubilee, Diamond Jubilee, and Platinum Jubilee medals. He also included his KCVO neck decoration and star as part of his attire.

Prince Harry appeared to leave sometime after the congregation portion of the ceremony concluded. Unlike his family, Harry was not permitted to appear on the balcony with his relatives because only working royals are allowed to do so. He was also not a part of the procession.

Related:Meghan Markle and Prince Harry Didn't Publicly Cross Paths with Senior Royals at Jubilee Celebrations

The Duke of Sussex traveled from California to support his father on coronation day, while Meghan Markle stayed back with their son Prince Archie and daughter Princess Lilibet. The coronation occurred on the same day as Prince Archie's 4th birthday, and a source previously told PEOPLE that Meghan is marking the occasion with "a low-key party at home."

The ongoing rift between Prince Harry and his family was evident in late March, when the Duke of Sussex was in London for a court hearing in his claim against Associated Newspapers but didn't see his father or brother during the trip/

"Things are strained," says a palace insider.

There was no communication between Prince Harry and Prince William in the lead-up to their father's coronation. An insider said Harry's attendance at the historic event would do little to ease tensions.

"I don't think the coronation and a big conversation can be conflated," an insider previously told PEOPLE.

In his memoir, Spare, released in January, Prince Harry addressed some of the issues that drove him and Prince William apart. The Duke of Sussex claimed that a 2019 confrontation over his relationship with Meghan turned physically violent, and he accused his brother of "parrot[ing of] the press narrative" about his wife.

Related:Inside Prince Archie's 'Low-Key' 4th Birthday Plans on Coronation Day

During an interview with ITV about Spare, the Duke of Sussex said he hoped to talk through the issues with his family before the historic coronation.

"There's a lot that can happen between now and then. But the door is always open. The ball is in their court," Harry told Tom Bradby in January. "There's a lot to be discussed, and I really hope that they're willing to sit down and talk about it."

But when Harry and Meghan received an email about the coronation from King Charles' office, it became clear that the "sit-down" Prince Harry sought wouldn't happen, a close friend told PEOPLE.

"They didn't hear from Charles. Harry wanted to hear from his father directly — it's always through somebody," the friend said. However, the estranged father and son ultimately connected — although not in person — and had "positive conversations," a source said.

King Charles, 74, was deeply saddened by the accusations of disloyalty and media manipulation his younger son made against the royal family in his sweeping memoir. But it was Charles' "first wish" for Harry to join the royal family at the coronation, said a source who knows the royals.

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"Despite the wounds, it's his son, and I can't imagine he wouldn't want him to be there regardless of the hurtful things that have been said," royal biographer Sally Bedell Smith, author of George VI and Elizabeth: The Marriage That Saved the Monarchy, told PEOPLE.

For Prince Harry, his solo appearance at the coronation has everything to do with his desire to have, as he has stated, a "family, not an institution."

"This is about a son showing up for his father rather than the optics of the institution," a close friend says.

The coronation service marks Prince Harry's first public appearance with other members of the royal family since the funeral of Queen Elizabeth in September, which Meghan attended. The couple was in Europe for a series of charitable events when the Queen died at Balmoral Castle in Scotland, hours after her doctors said they were "concerned" for her health.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex extended their trip abroad and remained in the U.K. for the funerary events that followed before returning home to California, where they settled after stepping back from their royal roles in 2020.

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