Real reason Meghan Markle and Prince Harry changed their children's surnames just two years ago
The Duchess of Sussex's Netflix show launched on Tuesday, and during episode two of the eight-part series, talk turned to Meghan's surname.
When The Office star Mindy Kaling referred to the Duchess by her maiden name, Meghan corrected her and spoke with pride about being Sussex: "You keep saying, Meghan Markle, you know, I'm Sussex now.
"You have kids, and you go, 'Now I share my name with my children’ … I didn’t know how meaningful it would be to me, but it just means so much to go 'This is our family name, our little family name'."
Watch below...
When Prince Harry and Meghan's son, Prince Archie, was born in May 2019, he was named as Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor on his birth certificate.
But changes within the line of succession since his birth have meant a few changes.
The Sussex title was given to Prince Harry on the morning of his wedding by his late grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II, in May 2018.
When Archie was born, Buckingham Palace announced that the royal tot had not been issued with a title and would be known as Master Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor.
The name Mountbatten-Windsor applies to male-line descendants of Queen Elizabeth II without royal styles and titles – hence why the Duke of Edinburgh's daughter, Lady Louise, uses it as her surname.
While Harry and Meghan stopped using their HRH styles when they stepped away from the monarchy in 2020, they cannot lose their Sussex titles, unless this is actioned through legislation.
When Charles became King in 2022, it meant that Archie and Lilibet became the children of a son of a sovereign, and were entitled to use their Prince and Princess titles – as set out by King George V in 1917.
Following Lilibet's christening in March 2023, Harry and Meghan confirmed that they would use their children's titles in formal settings, but not in everyday conversational use.
After this announcement, the palace updated its website to reflect the changes and Harry and Meghan's children are now listed as Prince Archie of Sussex and Princess Lilibet of Sussex.
Similarly to how the Prince and Princess of Wales's three children are known as George, Charlotte and Louis Wales at school, Archie and Lilibet use the surname Sussex.
When Princes William and Harry were children, they were known as William and Harry Wales, in reference to their father Charles' previous title, the Prince of Wales.
