The Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s son, Archie Mountbatten-Windsor, is now technically a prince after the death of the Queen.
The Duchess of Sussex, Meghan had controversially claimed this title was previously denied to him because of his race. She told US talk show host Oprah Winfrey that the decision was made not to give Archie amid conversations about "how dark his skin might be when he's born."
Prince Harry and Meghan's youngest child, Lilibet “Lili” Mountbatten-Windsor, is also entitled to be a princess. The change comes as her her grandfather, the Prince of Wales, becomes King.
The rules set out by King George V in 1917 mean Archie and Lili – as the children of a son of a sovereign – also now have an HRH style if they choose to use it.
In 2021, it was suggested Charles intended, when he became monarch, to prevent Archie becoming a prince. It is unclear if this move will go ahead but it has been believed that he had wanted to limit the number of key royals.
To do so, he will have to issue a Letters Patent amending Archie’s right to be a prince and Lili’s right to be a princess. Until that potentially happens, or if it does not, Archie and Lili remain a prince and princess, whether their parents choose to use the titles or not.
When Archie was born seventh in line to the throne in May 2019, he was too far down the line of succession to become prince automatically. Although he was a great-grandchild of the monarch, he was not a first-born son of a future king, so was not automatically a prince.
He could have previously used the courtesy title Earl of Dumbarton, or been Lord Archie Mountbatten-Windsor. Buckingham Palace said the duke and duchess made a personal decision that he should be plain Master Archie Mountbatten-Windsor instead.
A royal source said following Archie’s arrival that the couple had chosen not to give him a courtesy title “at this time”.
The Sussexes stopped using their own HRH styles after stepping down as senior working royals for a life in Los Angeles. The couple have since spoken about their time as working Royals in an interview with Meghan telling Oprah that, when she was pregnant with Archie, an unnamed member of the royal family had raised “concerns and conversations about how dark his skin might be when he’s born”.
It is not known if Prince Harry and Meghan will decide that Archie and Lili will be known as a prince and a princess. Prince Harry has spoken out in the past about wanting to be seen as normal.
The former soldier said the time he spent in the Army, when he was “just Harry”, was “the best escape I’ve ever had” and he had considered giving up his title. In 2017 he said that he once “wanted out” of the royal family – a wish that became a reality in 2020.
Meghan has said she and Harry wanted Archie to be a prince so he would have security and be protected. However being a prince or princess does not automatically mean royals have police bodyguards paid for by the taxpayer.
