A gay soldier told last night how Prince Harry bravely rescued him from a terrifying homophobic attack by squaddies from a rival regiment.
The Prince stepped in to save Trooper James Wharton after he was confronted by six soldiers threatening to ‘batter’ him.
Trooper Wharton fled to find Harry – who was his tank commander – and tearfully told the Prince what had happened.
‘I told him, “I think I’m going to be murdered by the infantry.” I climbed into the turret and talked Harry through exactly what had happened. He had a complete look of bewilderment on his face.
‘I couldn’t stop the tears from welling up in my eyes. He said, “Right I’m going to sort this s*** out once and for all.”
'He climbed out of the tank and I poked my head out of the turret a few moments later to see him having a go,’ Wharton said.
Harry, a Troop Commander in the Blues and Royals, confronted the tormentors, warning them they would face severe discipline if they continued their violent threats.
‘I could see he wasn’t holding back,’ said Wharton, who was 21 at the time.
After taking on the gang, Harry briefed a senior officer before returning to assure Wharton the situation had been ‘sorted’.
Battling homophobes in the military. Now THAT is the kind of thing that would make even a common soldier a prince among men.
Just so happens this is an actual prince.
I have kind of been a Prince Harry fan for awhile now. Especially after I watched him abruptly end an interview while in Afghanistan in response to an alarm.
Diana had a lot of good influence in this regard.
ReplyDeleteGood on Harry.
His mother would be proud. These boys have grown up to be gentlemen, with good values and good intentions. That is a great story.
ReplyDeleteHe’s a good one. When Harry decides to sort something out, you can bet it gets sorted. My husband thinks royal watching is stupid, but I get a kick out of it.
ReplyDeleteHarry loves his life in the military. I hope he gets to stay there; his uncle Andrew served in the Royal Navy until retirement.
ReplyDeleteI do like those two sons of Charles and Diana. They have always had a humble nature about them, and show they are royalty that wants to engage with the people and don't make anyone feel they are entitled brats.
ReplyDeleteIt's refreshing to see that there are many who would speak out for anyone, whether gay or straight, from bullies. Love the little Prince!!
I love that abruptly ended interview. Personally, I think every interview should be ended that way.
ReplyDeleteGo, Harry!
He's a pretty good fellow. I also think he is quite good looking. He resembles Diana's brother and sister, both redheads. Because of Diana, I think the boys are more compassionate than the other royals.
ReplyDeleteGiven this incident, do we have any clue at how many gay people in the military are merely 'disappeared', and then made to look as though they were training accidents or combat deaths??? Considering that a large group of men were involved in the bullying and death threats, it's hard to think either that this was an isolated incident, or that there are not group acts of violence.
ReplyDeleteAnd as for the widespread rape within the military, if you do a little searching you will discover that much of it is rape against MALE soldiers. Thus, the macho, anti-gay men who 'go off to war' are actually raping other men – ie, they are engaging in homosexual acts themselves, while bullying actual homosexuals. I understand that rape is a form of violence and not a sexual act per se, but in these cases I consider their macho facades to be nothing more than a phony 'front', the acts of seriously conflicted 'men'. I think that if we knew what went on within the military, even apart from the horrors of war, we would be beyond appalled.
I applaud Harry for what he did, but having read the entire excerpt just now, this little shit created a good deal of the trouble he got into with his loudmouth bragging and stupid choices. I'd have smacked him up side the head myself...but not because he was gay, because he was a fucking attention seeking dick.
ReplyDeleteWhat was in store for him wasn't right or fair by the hands of those bullies and I"m glad that someone who could prevent it, did, but I have little to no respect for the little pipsqueak jerk, who didn't have the good sense to keep his bragging mouth shut and put not just himself, but his one night stand, in harm's way. He threw an emotional bomb, and then scampered away squealing for help to stop it from exploding. Idiot.
I admire Prince Harry not only for his compassion and understanding, but for standing up for his fellow soldier. I read the whole article, and I can see someone wanting to "blame the victim", but the same actions that got this man in trouble would get a heterosexual a pat on the back and a few free pints at the bar.
ReplyDeleteWhat didn't surprise me was that the leader of the pack who attacked this soldier, was later seen kissing a man in public, and nothing came of it. So it could be seen as "ok" for the gay solider to get bullied and attacked, but who's the one living an authentic life? The victim or the closeted attacker?
Harry's frank discussion with the others about his sexuality and coming of age was refreshing. Yeah, he's "royalty", but he's fully human, with the same experiences as his peers.
Kissing and telling is low rent in any situation. If he'd kept his goddamn mouth shut he wouldn't have nearly become a victim.
DeleteHe exercised stupid choices in an effort to try to be one of the gang. His need for attention, and his insecurity led him to blurt out his private business without considering the consequences to the other person, much less himself.
It's not about blaming the victim, since he didn't ever become the victim, it's about pointing out that we are all responsible for our actions and some of us consider the consequences before we open our mouths to feed our egos. He KNEW what the environment was, he was pushing the limits and when he got challenged, he ran squealing for help. If he hadn't opened his mouth up in the first place, he wouldn't have had to scurry.
My comment has nothing to do with him being gay, I don't think that ANYONE, gay or straight, deserves to be physically hurt for their sexuality. I'm glad that he wasn't. I'm glad to Harry responded to the situation the way he did, but you cannot discount that this idiot sowed the seeds of this situation.
Harry stunned crowds with his daredevilry over the weekend when he participated in a number of impressive helicopter stunts at the Royal Air Force Cosford Air Show.
ReplyDeleteThe 28-year-old royal, who has been serving in the British army since May 2005, sat front-seat copilot gunner in an Apache helicopter on Sunday, entertaining the air show spectators with a series of death-defying stunts -- including one that involved rolling the helicopter on its back. (Watch the video below for the aerial tricks.)
According to the Sun, Harry -- whose title in the RAF is "Captain Wales" -- was a surprise guest at the annual air show. It was reportedly his first time participating at the event.
"Everyone was so shocked when they realized Harry was taking part -- nobody knew," an onlooker told the British tabloid.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/10/prince-harry-helicopter_n_3416361.html?utm_hp_ref=world&ir=World