Not fair treatment? Archie and Lilibet’s title controversy is getting more heat. After the death of Queen Elizabeth, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are fighting for their children to have royal titles.
The change of titles happened after Queen Elizabeth’s death. Archie and Lilibet are now considered Prince and Princess, however they cannot have the His Royal Highness or Her Royal Highness titles. A source told The Sun, “That is the agreement — they can be prince and princess but not HRH because they are not working royals.” The decision comes after “a lot of talks over the past week.” The source continued, “They have been relentless since the Queen died,” and “have been insistent that Archie and Lilibet are prince and princess. But they have been left furious that Archie and Lilibet cannot take the title HRH.”
Meghan first spoke out against the title rules and security for her children in her tell-all Oprah interview in March 2021. Meghan and Harry explained how Archie’s lack of a prince title has led to complications for them with the royal family. “They were saying they didn’t want him to be a prince or princess, which would be different from protocol, and that he wasn’t going to receive security,” Meghan said. “This went on for the last few months of our pregnancy where I was going, hold on for a second.”
According to People, under the current guidelines, the great-grandchildren of the monarch are not princes and princesses except for the children of the eldest son of Prince Charles, who is first in line for the throne. This exception is why Prince William (who is second in line for the throne) and Kate Middleton’s kids are Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis. When King Charles inherited the throne, Archie and Lilibet became prince and princess now that Harry is the king’s son.
The Queen died on September 8, 2022, in Balmoral Castle in Scotland. When he was officially proclaimed as monarch, he said in his speech, “I know how deeply you and the entire nation and I think I may say the whole world sympathizes with me in the irreparable loss we have all suffered. It is the greatest consolation to me to know of the sympathy expressed by so many to my sister and my brothers and as such overwhelming affection and support should be extended to our whole family in our loss. To all of us as a family.” He continued, “My mother’s reign was unequaled in its duration, its dedication and its devotion. Even as we grieve we give thanks for this most faithful life. I am deeply aware of this great inheritance and of the duties and heavy responsibilities of sovereignty which have now passed to me.”
Image: Courtesy of Random House.
For more about the British royal family, check out Sally Bedell Smith’s 2012 biography, Elizabeth the Queen: The Life of a Modern Monarch
. The New York Times bestseller, which includes the “real story” behind several storylines featured in Netflix’s The Crown, follows Queen Elizabeth II’s life from her childhood as the “heiress presumptive” to her father, King George VI; to the moment he met her husband, Prince Philip, when she was 13 years old; to her ascension to the throne at 25 years old in 1952. Elizabeth the Queen, which also includes interviews with Buckingham Palace sources and never-before-revealed documents, provides a deep dive into the Queen’s legacy as one of the most famous monarchs in recent history.
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