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Prince Harry's official title was apparently almost scrapped by the Royal Family

If there’s one thing Netflix’s Princess Switch taught us over the Christmas period, it’s that being royalty isn’t necessarily all it's cracked up to be.

For the British Royal Family - arguably the most high-profile Royal Family in the world - there’s the pressure of centuries-long traditions and duty. No surprises, then, that a couple of its members have been keen to opt out.

New reports suggest Prince Harry was once one of them. At one point the Prince apparently wanted to scrap his title and live like common people do - until one member of the family stopped him. When Harry was on the verge of giving up his princely status, his close relationship with his grandmother (a.k.a. the Queen) changed his mind.

The British Royal Family (Getty Images)
The British Royal Family (Getty Images)

In a new documentary, Meghan Markle: American Princess, royal biographer Penny Juror explained, “Harry was a reluctant Royal. I think there was a real danger at one time that Harry might turn his back on his Royal life and Royal responsibilities and go and live somewhere quietly.”

However, Gayle King of CBS This Morning revealed that he “decided not to abandon his duties for the sake of the Queen." She added, “She, like the rest of us, forgave him.”

Prince Harry and Queen Elizabeth share a close relationship - the pair have been photographed making one another giggle at events. They even goofed about for the Invictus Games, issuing a tongue-in-cheek 'mic drop' challenge to the Obamas.

According to protocol, the Queen also had to give her formal consent before Prince Harry could marry Meghan Markle last May, a moment when her affection for her grandson appeared to show.

In it, she referred to her Prince Harry as her “most dearly beloved grandson." In her engagement interview with the BBC Meghan Markle talked about getting to know the Queen through Harry: “It's incredible, I think, you know, to be able to meet her through his lens, not just with his honour and respect for her as the monarch, but the love that he has for her as his grandmother.”

The Queen with Prince Harry at the wedding of Prince Charles and Camilla Parker-Bowles (REX/Shutterstock)
The Queen with Prince Harry at the wedding of Prince Charles and Camilla Parker-Bowles (REX/Shutterstock)

Markle added that it's something that has impacted her own understanding of the monarch. “All of those layers have been so important for me so that when I met her I had such a deep understanding, and of course incredible respect, for being able to have that time with her. And we've had a really - she's, she's an incredible woman.”

Had Prince Harry given up his title, it would have had a pretty dramatic impact on the line of succession.

Harry is currently sixth in line to the throne, following his father Prince Charles, Prince William, Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis.

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If he had stepped down, his uncle Prince Andrew, Duke of York, would have assumed his place and bumped the rest of his relatives (including Princess Beatrice and Eugenie) up a rung.

Giving up a title isn’t out of the ordinary for the Royal Family. There was, of course, the famous abdication of Edward VIII which ended up bumping the Queen up the line of succession. Also, Harry’s grandfather Prince Philip gave up his royal titles - though for different reasons.

Prior to his marriage to Queen Elizabeth, Prince Philip was in line for not one but two titles as the Prince of both Greece and Denmark. According to royal biographer Alan Titchmarsh, Philip gave up his titles when he became a “naturalized British subject” in 1947 in preparation for marriage to Queen Elizabeth.