Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s children are now entitled to be known as Prince and Princess after the Queen’s death. The son of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, Archie Mountbatten-Windsor, is now technically a prince – a title that Meghan has disputed has been denied in the past because of his race. His younger sister, Lilibet – named after her late great-grandmother the Queen and known as ‘Lili’ – is also eligible to become a princess. Last year it was reported that new King Charles intended to prevent Archie, three, from becoming a prince when he ascended the throne, in a bid to limit the number of key royals. The current rules, as set in 1917 by King George V, mean that Archie and Lily, for one, also have an HRH title if they want to use it, as they are children of a son of a sovereign. If Charles wishes to change these rules, he will have to issue Letters Patent which will amend Archie’s right to be a prince and Lili’s right to be a princess. Until that happens, Archie and Lily will remain prince and princess, whether their parents choose to use the titles or not.
Queen Elizabeth II dead: Key details
Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II has died after 70 years on the throne, with her death announced by Buckingham Palace on 8 September 2022. She died aged 96 surrounded by her family at her Balmoral home, including her son and heir to the throne Charles, Prince of Wales, and her grandsons, the Duke of Cambridge, Prince William and the Duke of Sussex. Prince Torture. Follow the Metro.co.uk live blog for the latest updates. The Sussexes stopped using their own HRH styles after stepping down as senior members of the royal family for life in the US, and there were later calls for the titles of duke and duchess to be removed. Prince Harry with Meghan, Duchess of Sussex and their son Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor in 2019 (Image: WireImage) Lilibet Diana Mountbatten-Windsor is one (Image: PA) If Harry and Meghan decide that Archie and Lily will be known as prince and princess, the move will be in stark contrast to how Harry has spoken about the weight of holding a title. Harry, who sadly ended up at the Queen’s bedside after her death, has repeatedly stressed the importance of wanting to be seen as normal and confessed in 2017 that he once “wanted to leave” the royal family – which he did in 2020 . The former soldier said his time in the army, when he was “just Harry”, was “the best escape I’ve ever had”. In the couple’s bombshell interview with Oprah Winfrey, Meghan claimed that Archie was not given the title of prince because of his race. However, when Archie was born seventh in line to the throne in May 2019, he was well down the line of succession. Prince Harry arrives at Balmoral shortly after his grandmother’s death (Image: REX/Shutterstock) Although he was a great-grandson of the monarch, he was not the first-born son of a future king, so he was not automatically a prince. He may have previously used the courtesy title Earl of Dumbarton or was Lord Archie Mountbatten-Windsor. But Buckingham Palace said the Duke and Duchess had made a personal decision to be Master Archie Mountbatten-Windsor. A royal source said after Archie’s arrival that the couple had chosen not to give him a courtesy title “at this time”. Prince Harry is close to his cousins Zara Tyndall and Peter Phillips and may have taken their experiences into account. Map shows areas in England where more than 12,000,000 could be plunged into ‘fuel poverty’ Royal writer Penny Junor explained: “(Harry) looked at Zara and Peter and it was a lot easier for them than it was for him. “He was constantly in the spotlight. His friends were targeted whenever he did something wrong or misbehaved in any way. “We didn’t know anything about Zara or Peter when they were growing up because they were ordinary kids who went to ordinary schools and weren’t treated in any special way.” Zara, who was raised as Miss Zara Phillips, was ineligible to become an HRH because she was born in the female line as a descendant of a sovereign’s daughter. He has talked about how not having a title has been a blessing.
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“I was very lucky. My parents didn’t give us titles, so we managed to have a slightly more normal upbringing. Once you have a title, it’s very difficult to lose it,” he said.
Meghan said that she and Harry wanted Archie to be a prince so he would be safe and protected.
But being a prince or princess doesn’t automatically mean the royals have taxpayer-paid police bodyguards, and the Sussexes chose to live in the US.
Archie is technically the first ever Prince of Sussex and Lili the first Princess of Sussex.
The previous 19th-century Duke of Sussex – an eccentric son of King George III – had both his marriages declared illegitimate.
Eventually Archie will have the right to succeed Harry as Duke of Sussex.
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