Rumors circulating online about the royal family is nothing rare. Members of the royal family going on the record to address online rumors, however, doesn't happen every day.
Over the weekend, a rumor worthy of royal comment made the rounds online following a report from the Daily Beast that claimed the Duke of Sussex had registered his son at his alma mater, Eton College, a boarding school in the U.K. with a long history of ties to the royal family.
On Wednesday, Sept. 24, a spokesperson for Prince Harry and Meghan Markle shut down the the rumors that Harry had registered Archie at Eton, which is located near Windsor and is widely-believed to be the school Harry's oldest nephew, Prince George, will attend when he turns 13.
“I can confirm that the Duke has not put his son’s name down for Eton and has no plans to send his son there,” the spokesperson told People.
In addition to the Daily Beast report, a separate report from the Daily Mail fueled the rumor about Archie attending Eton, quoting a source described as one of Harry's "pals" who claimed that Harry expressed wanting his children to go to the U.K. to attend school.
"I can tell you that Harry wants to educate the children here in the U.K.," the source told the Daily Mail's Richard Eden.
The Daily Mail source went on to claim that Harry "feels his children are missing out on the extensive family network that their niece and nephews are enjoying," referring to six-year-old Archie and four-year-old Lilibet's royal cousins, Prince George, 12, Princess Charlotte, 10, and Prince Louis, 7.
"Harry wants his children to have the very best education," the source claimed. "He has retained his closest friendship group of confidants from his days at school at Ludgrove and Eton. He wants that for his own children."
Although the Daily Mail source's claims seem to be incorrect, they mirror statements Harry's longtime friend, singer Joss Stone, said he made when they caught up at the WellChild Awards earlier this month.
Speaking to Hello!, Stone said that Harry seemed "genuinely interested" in hearing about her family's recent move back to the U.K. and that the conversation gave her the impression that, "Maybe Harry will move back too. That would be nice."
Stone went on to say that she and Harry also discussed some of the specific benefits of raising children in the U.K.—and that education did come up.
"He was saying how wonderful the schools are here and how important community is for children," she added. "It was nice to share that with him because it’s exactly why we felt drawn to come back—for the kids to grow up surrounded by family, friends and a strong sense of belonging and most importantly in a safe environment."
