I’m trying not to get too bogged down with writing about Prince Harry’s story and his whining about status, role and the fact that due to him not being in direct line of succession to the throne, and moving down further each time the Prince and Princess of Wales have another child. There are many other writers who are covering this subject in much more depth than I either can or want to do.

However I’m struck by how Harry’s story of a conflict between brothers is so similar to ancient tales of fraternal troubles. In particular I’m struck by how this is a bit of a modern day Cain and Abel story but instead of fratricide as in the Biblical story, there is character assassination, whines about who had the bigger bedroom as children and complaints by Harry about his status within the House of Windsor.

The parallels between the Cain and Abel story are increased when it is realised that some theologians and historians believe that the Cain and Abel story was from the period of the Babylonian exile and relates to a possible folk memory of people in the Fertile Crescent about the conflict between nomadic pastoralists and settled agriculturalists. As this story is believed by Biblical scholars to have been inserted into the Bible at a much later date than originally believed, it’s quite possible that the exiled Jews in Babylon believed that the story that became the Cain and Abel story was important and related to something big, which conflict between pastoralists and farmers was and was therefore worth preserving and incorporating into Jewish sacred texts.

If the Cain and Abel story was one that had its roots in conflict over land between different types of land use, then maybe the Harry and William story is somewhat similar? It may represent a conflict between those in the Royal Family, such as the King and the Prince of Wales who are rooted in a particular place and culture, in this case the United Kingdom and Harry who is not so rooted. It is as if William as Douglas Murray once described is one the ‘people from somewhere’ and Harry who with his embrace of Californian culture, represents the ‘people from nowhere’. Two visions of the monarchy are present in this conflict and only one can win out just as agriculture won out in the ancient conflict between herders and farmers.

Here’s the text of Genesis 4. See if you can see any parallels between the current travails of Britain’s ruling house?

4 Adam[a] made love to his wife Eve, and she became pregnant and gave birth to Cain.[b] She said, “With the help of the Lord I have brought forth[c] a man.” 2 Later she gave birth to his brother Abel.

Now Abel kept flocks, and Cain worked the soil. 3 In the course of time Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering to the Lord. 4 And Abel also brought an offering—fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock. The Lord looked with favor on Abel and his offering, 5 but on Cain and his offering he did not look with favor. So Cain was very angry, and his face was downcast.

6 Then the Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? 7 If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it.”

8 Now Cain said to his brother Abel, “Let’s go out to the field.”[d] While they were in the field, Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him.

9 Then the Lord said to Cain, “Where is your brother Abel?”

“I don’t know,” he replied. “Am I my brother’s keeper?”

10 The Lord said, “What have you done? Listen! Your brother’s blood cries out to me from the ground. 11 Now you are under a curse and driven from the ground, which opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand. 12 When you work the ground, it will no longer yield its crops for you. You will be a restless wanderer on the earth.”

13 Cain said to the Lord, “My punishment is more than I can bear. 14 Today you are driving me from the land, and I will be hidden from your presence; I will be a restless wanderer on the earth, and whoever finds me will kill me.”

15 But the Lord said to him, “Not so[e]; anyone who kills Cain will suffer vengeance seven times over.” Then the Lord put a mark on Cain so that no one who found him would kill him. 16 So Cain went out from the Lord’s presence and lived in the land of Nod,[f] east of Eden.

17 Cain made love to his wife, and she became pregnant and gave birth to Enoch. Cain was then building a city, and he named it after his son Enoch.