Prince Harry says in leaked extract of new book that William physically attacked him

Prince Harry has accused his brother Prince William of physically attacking him during an argument over his marriage to Meghan, The Guardian reported Thursday.

The British newspaper said it had obtained an advance copy of Harry’s much-anticipated new memoir, “Spare,” which is due to be published next Tuesday, Jan. 10.

Harry says in the book that William “knocked him to the floor” during an argument at the Sussexes’ London home in 2019 as the brothers’ relationship spiraled, The Guardian reports.

The forthcoming book looks set to escalate Harry and Meghan’s feud with the royal family, as the couple seeks to present their side of a story pitting Hollywood celebrity against the centuries-old British institution.

NBC News has not yet obtained or seen a copy of the book. Representatives for Prince Harry declined to comment on the record, the publisher Penguin Random House did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The title of the book is an apparent reference to Harry’s being a royal “spare,” not the first in line to succession. William, Prince of Wales, is next in line.

According to The Guardian, the book describes “intensely private scenes and conversations” that cover everything from Harry’s early childhood to his marriage with the former actress Meghan Markle. This includes details on Harry’s relationship with his mother, Princess Diana, who died in a car crash in 1997, his father, now King Charles, and his late grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II. 

Kensington Palace, which represents Prince William, and Buckingham Palace, which represents King Charles, declined to comment on allegations made in the book. 

The Guardian article focuses on an alleged attack in Harry and Meghan’s former London home at Nottingham Cottage on the grounds of Kensington Palace in 2019. 

Prince Harry reportedly says in the book that his brother William had complained about Meghan and called her “difficult,” “rude” and “abrasive.”

The confrontation then escalated with the brothers yelling and insulting each other, the newspaper says the book recounts. Harry reportedly says that he was scared of his brother, who was furious and following him around the house. Harry writes that William then grabbed him by the collar and ripped his necklace before knocking him to the floor, the Guardian reports.

“I landed on the dog’s bowl, which cracked under my back, the pieces cutting into me. I lay there for a moment, dazed,” Harry writes in the leaked passage of the book published by The Guardian. Harry then reportedly told his brother to leave, which he did after initially urging Harry to hit him back, according to the newspaper. 

William later returned and apologized, the newspaper reports, though the extract says that he suggested Harry not tell Meghan about the alleged altercation. 

“‘You mean that you attacked me?,’ Harry writes that he responded, according to the newspaper. “‘I didn’t attack you, Harold,’” he reportedly recounts William calling back.

Harry writes that he initially only spoke to a therapist about the alleged incident, according to the leak. But when Meghan noticed “scrapes and bruises” on his back, he told her what had happened, The Guardian quotes the book as saying.