Chelsea kicks prince to the curb?

PRINCE HARRY has split with his girlfriend Chelsy Davy after a five-year relationship.

Harry, 24, began intensive training to become an Army Air Corps helicopter pilot on Monday while Chelsy, 23, is reportedly studying a post-graduate law course at Leeds University.

They have split just weeks after holidaying together, royal sources said last night.

Sources confirmed the couple had parted after the story appeared on the News of the World website.

The newspaper said it was not known what caused the break-up but that friends of Chelsy have said the time the pair spent apart and Harry's lifestyle were to blame.

The report claims it was the decision of the prince's girlfriend to end the relationship.

A royal source confirmed last night that the pair had split up but said the separation was amicable and that they remained friends. The source said the couple had reached the stage in their careers where they could find themselves spending less time together.

The break-up comes after the pair spent some of the festive period on holiday in Mauritius.

They began dating in 2004 but three years later broke up for a short period. They were soon back together again but it now appears the relationship is finally over.

The couple are believed to have met through friends in spring 2004, although they were not pictured together until later. At the time, Harry, then 19, was on a double gap year after leaving Eton, travelling to countries including Australia and Argentina.

Miss Davy, who was born in Zimbabwe, would most likely have been completing her education at smart Cheltenham Ladies' College, located close to Harry's father, the Prince of Wales' Highgrove estate. The pretty blonde is the daughter of millionaire hunting safari operator Charles Davy, whose Zimbabwe connections have, in the past, generated media scrutiny.

For almost three years, the pair sustained a long-distance relationship.

After leaving school, Miss Davy began studying at university in Cape Town, while Harry began his military training at Sandhurst in 2005, later becoming a Cornet in the Blues and Royals.

The couple managed to find time for each other, enjoying holidays in places such as Mozambique and Botswana. In an interview to mark his 21st birthday in September 2005, a devoted Harry described his girlfriend as "very special" and "amazing".

"I would love to tell everyone how amazing she is. But, you know, that is my private life and once I start talking about that, then I've left my own self open, and if anyone asks me in the future, then they'll say 'Oh well hang on, you told them but why aren't you telling us?"' he told Sky News. It was reported that the couple's first separation came after the Prince missed her 22nd birthday party to go to the Rugby World Cup Final in Paris.

The break up marks the end of the young Royal's first serious relationship.