Prince Harry: first royal in 130 years to give evidence in court as he is back in London for Mirror case

Prince Harry has been standing his ground against the British press for the past couple of years as seen by his recent tell-all memoir ‘Spare’, but this week the Duke of Sussex will take a different kind of stand.

The 38-year-old is due to return to this side of the pond from his Montecito home and testify in London’s High Court against the Mirror Group Newspapers as his case continues.

Prince Harry’s homecoming marks the first time he has been back on British soil since his father King Charles’ Coronation as well as his failed legal bid to the Home Office to allow him to privately pay for UK security.

While his application for security was denied, Prince Harry is hoping to have more luck in the witness stand this week as he, alongside 100 other high-profile celebrities including Cheryl Cole and Ian Wright, seeks compensation from MGN alleging that they gathered personal information unlawfully.

The Prince’s High Court unprecedented testimony marks the first time in 130 years that a senior British royal has given evidence in court - PeopleWorld takes a look at the history:

When was the last time a British royal gave evidence in court before Harry?

Although Prince Harry gets compared to his great-granduncle Prince Edward VIII due to their similarities in finding love with an American lady and moving away from the Firm, it just so happens that the latter’s grandfather Edward VII was the last royal to give evidence in court in the 1890s.

Edward VII appeared in court twice as a witness before he was crowned King; firstly to provide evidence in a 1870 divorce settlement when he was accused of having an affair with a British lawmaker’s wife, prior to a slander trial in 1891 over a card game.

Other British royals to appear in court, albeit not stepping up to the witness stand, include Prince Andrew after he was sued by Virginia Giuffre in the United States, Princess Anne who was found guilty of speeding as well as being convicted of a criminal offence (the first royal to do so in 350 years) when she failed to stop one of her dogs biting a child; and George V who denied bigamy.

It must also be noted that Charles I was brought to court way back in 1649 after the end of the English Civil War for treason. The monarch failed to recognise the court’s authority and was found guilty before he was sentenced to death.