Featured Image Credit: Toby Melville - Pool/Getty Images
Topics: Meghan Markle, Prince William, Royal Family, Parenting
Britt Jones
Topics: Meghan Markle, Prince William, Royal Family, Parenting
Since Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's switch from the dreary rain in the UK to the sunny climate in US for the sake of their children, it's been revealed why they changed their kids names after their birth.
The pair called it quits on the Royal Family to raise their children in a very different environment just a few years ago and they've kept a lot of it hush hush from the public.
Harry, who is currently celebrating his 40th birthday at an alleged California 'lads holiday', has been shown to have blossomed since moving from the UK.
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It all began when Meghan and Harry, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, first started dating in 2016 and announced their engagement in November 2017.
The pair were quickly married in a televised wedding within St. George’s Chapel in Windsor Castle in 2018, where Meghan stunned in her elegant gown.
Their first pregnancy was announced in November 2018, and Archie was born in 2019.
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However, all was not sunshine and rainbows at the palace.
A lot of controversy followed the couple, leading to the two stepping back from their duties as senior royals in 2020.
It was only after the 2021 birth of their daughter, Lilibet, that the two appeared in an interview with Oprah Winfrey, in which Meghan claimed a member of the royal household made horrid comments about how dark Archie's skin would be due to her heritage.
She went to say that the way she was treated impacted her mental health.
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They went on to release Netflix's documentary Harry & Meghan in 2022 which told their truth.
Meghan clearly held many other members of the household in incredibly high esteem - her daughter’s name, Lilibet, is a nickname for Elizabeth, the name of the late Queen.
With the two now living and working in LA, they have managed to shun a lot of the negative attention and press - but fans still love learning every detail about the family.
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It surprised some that Meghan and Harry changed the last names of their children - but it’s been revealed just why they did it.
The children switched from Mountbatten-Windsor to Sussex.
It has been reported that the reason for this leads back to the coronation of King Charles on 6 May, 2023.
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Five-year-old Archie and three-year-old Lilibet were moved up in the line of succession following the coronation, and the little ones were bestowed with the new titles of Prince and Princess of Sussex.
Prior to this, they were officially Master Archie and Miss Lilibet.
A lesser-known fact is that the British custom for names of princes and princesses is that they adopt their titles or their parents' titles as surnames.
As an example, at school, both Prince Harry and his brother, Prince William, had the titles of William Wales and Harry Wales to reflect their parents’ status of Prince and Princess of Wales.
So, Harry and Meghan have opted to follow tradition by adapting the surnames of their children.