Prince Harry and Meghan Markle recently surprised palace aides with their “highly ironic” decision to give their two children royal titles this week as per Fox News Digital.
“It appears that with one decisive stroke, she and Harry declared that their children would be prince and princess, basically making the king’s decision for him,” Christopher Andersen, author of the “The King: The Life of Charles III,” said a day after the couple first referred to their daughter as Princess Lilibet in her christening announcement.
The celebration for the 21-month-old was confirmed Wednesday. She turns 2 in June.
“I can confirm that Princess Lilibet Diana was christened on Friday, March 3, by the bishop in the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles, the Rev John Taylor,” a spokesperson for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex told Fox News Digital in a statement at the time.
Andersen noted that “Charles has been dragging his feet on this one for six months now, and frankly, it did seem quite possible the titles might never be forthcoming if it were left entirely up to the palace.”
On Thursday, the royal family’s website was updated for the line of succession to include Prince Archie of Sussex and Princess Lilibet of Sussex, listed right after their father, the Duke of Sussex.
“The largely faceless courtiers who run the monarchy — Diana used to call them the ‘men in gray’ — were clearly taken by surprise and none too happy that they were placed in the awkward position of having to update the royal website, and quickly,” Andersen added.
Princess Lilibet, 1, and her older brother Prince Archie, 3, earned the right to their royal titles once their grandfather King Charles III acceded to the throne last year.
“To put this all in context, it is worth noting that Princess Anne, the King’s sister, refrained from giving her two children titles,” Andersen said. “Similarly, the king’s brother, Prince Edward, made the decision not to give his two children the HRH status.
“It was obviously more important to Harry and Meghan that Archie and Lilibet get the full treatment, which seems highly ironic since the Sussexes are no longer working royals, live half a world away and spend a great deal of time lobbing grenades over palace walls.”
He added that Harry and Meghan are in a “unique position” after stepping down as senior royals in 2020 and moving to California.
“Like any parents, they want to see their children get what they feel is rightfully theirs. They are still resentful for having been sidelined as ‘lesser royals,’ and that goes double for their kids,” he said, adding the palace was “hardly in a position to deny Archie and Lilibet titles once the Sussexes’ declaration was made.”
Andersen wondered if Harry and Markle’s declaration suggests they plan to attend Charles’ coronation in May “perhaps even with their children.”
