The death of the Queen will likely result in a number of changes to the titles of prominent royals, notably the Cambridges and the Sussexes.
Archie Mountbatten-Windsor, the son of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, is now officially a prince after the death of the Queen, a title Meghan has controversially claimed was previously denied to him due to his ethnicity.
His younger sister, Lilibet “Lili” Mountbatten-Windsor, is also eligible to be a princess upon the death of the Queen and the accession to the throne of her grandfather, the Prince of Wales.
The laws established by King George V in 1917 indicate that Archie and Lili, as the offspring of a son of a royal, now have the option to wear the HRH style if they so choose.
In the meantime, the Cambridges will undergo significant changes. As the oldest son of Charles, Prince William acquired the title of Duke of Cornwall.
William and Kate have already modified their names to include Cornwall, a title they gained as a virtue of Prince Charles’ accession to the throne. They are now the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Cornwall.
However, this might soon change. Prince William’s father might grant him the title of Prince of Wales. In 1958, the Queen bestowed King Charles the title.
Kate will become the Princess of Wales if William is granted the title of Prince of Wales. Diana, William’s mother, last had the title while she was married to Charles.
Technically, Camilla was also the Princess of Wales, but she never used the title due to its relationship with Diana.
If William becomes the Earl of Chester, Kate will also acquire the title of Countess of Chester. She is also the Duchess of Rothesay in Scotland, a position formerly held by Camilla.
Prince George of Cornwall and Cambridge, Princess Charlotte of Cornwall and Cambridge, and Prince Louis of Cornwall and Cambridge are the children of William and Kate. When William becomes Prince of Wales, they will become “of Wales.”
Similarly, Harry and Meghan’s children will now become Prince and Princess for the first time.
During the couple’s shocking interview with Oprah Winfrey, Meghan Markle detailed her ‘suffering’ as she claimed that authorities had denied Prince Archie the title of prince and that Buckingham Palace had failed to protect him by providing him 24-hour protection.
Meghan said that she had no connection to the ‘grandeur’ of formal titles when asked whether it was ‘essential’ that Archie be referred to as a prince.
But she said it was about ‘the idea of our son not being safe, and also the idea of the first member of colour in this family not being titled in the same way that other grandchildren would be.’
In 2021, it was speculated that Charles, in an effort to reduce the number of important royals, planned to prevent Archie from becoming a prince when he became king.
To do so, he must issue a Letters Patent modifying Archie’s and Lili’s rights to be prince and princess, respectively.
Archie and Lili continue to have the titles of prince and princess, regardless of whether or not their parents choose to use them.
Meghan said in the Sussexes’ explosive interview with Oprah Winfrey that Archie was not granted the title of prince due of his ethnicity.
However, when Archie was born in May 2019 as the seventh-in-line to the throne, he was too far down the succession line.
Although he was a great-grandchild of the monarch, he was not the eldest son of a future king, and hence was not automatically a prince.
Previously, he may have adopted the honorific title Earl of Dumbarton or been known as Lord Archie Mountbatten-Windsor.
Buckingham Palace said, however, that the duke and duchess made a personal choice for him to be known as Master Archie Mountbatten-Windsor.
Following Archie’s birth, a royal insider said that the couple had decided not to grant him a courtesy title “at this time.”
Meghan said to Oprah that, when she was pregnant with Archie, an unknown member of the royal family expressed “concerns and conversations about how dark his skin might be when he’s born.”
After leaving their positions as senior working royals for a life in Los Angeles, the Sussexes ceased using their own HRH styles, and there were subsequent requests for their duke and duchess titles to be revoked.
If Harry and Meghan decide that Archie and Lili will be referred children as prince and princess, this will be in stark contrast to how Harry has always described the weight of bearing a title.
He constantly emphasised the significance of wanting to be seen as normal and said in 2017 that he previously ‘wanted out’ of the royal family, a desire that came true in 2020.
The former soldier said that his time in the Army as “just Harry” was “the best escape I’ve ever had” and that he had pondered relinquishing his title.
Royal author Penny Junor said: ‘He would have dearly liked to have been a normal boy growing up, and found his title very difficult.’
The duke is close to his cousins, Zara Tindall and Peter Phillips, and may have taken their experiences on board.
Junor added: ‘He looked at Zara and Peter and it was so much easier for them than for him.
‘He was constantly the centre of attention. His friends were targeted whenever he did anything wrong or misbehaved in any way.
‘We knew nothing about Zara or Peter when they were growing up because they were ordinary children going to ordinary schools and were not being treated in any special way.’
Zara, who grew up as Miss Zara Phillips, was not entitled to be an HRH because she was born in the female line as the offspring of the daughter of a sovereign.
She has spoken of how not having a title was a blessing.
‘I’ve been very lucky. My parents didn’t give us titles, so we’ve been able to have a slightly more normal upbringing. As soon as you’ve got a title, it’s very difficult to shed it,’ she said.
Affectionately called ‘Granny’ and ‘Gan-Gan’, the monarch enjoyed a close bond with the younger generation of royals. Pictured this snap, taken at Balmoral Castle in 2018 by the Duchess of Cambridge, shows the Queen and the late Duke of Edinburgh sitting alongside seven of their great-grandchildren left-right: Prince George, Prince Louis, Princess Charlotte, Savannah Phillips (behind), Isla Phillips holding Lena Tindall and Mia Tindall
As the children of a son of a monarch, Lady Louise Windsor and Viscount Severn of the Earl and Countess of Wessex were permitted to use the titles princess and prince.
With the Queen’s approval, Edward and Sophie elected to use the courtesy titles of an earl instead.
Meghan said that she and Harry wanted for Archie to be a prince in order to provide him with security and protection.
But being a prince or princess does not automatically entitle them to taxpayer-funded police bodyguards, and the Sussexes have chosen to reside in the United States.
Archie is the first Prince of Sussex in history, while Lili is the first Princess of Sussex.
Both of the marriages of the eccentric Duke of Sussex from the nineteenth century, who was the son of King George III, were pronounced illegal.
Lady Augusta Murray, his mistress, was not the Duchess of Sussex, and his illegitimate son was Master Augustus Frederick d’Este.
Lady Augusta referred to herself, however, as a duchess and a princess, and her servants referred to her son as Prince Augustus and her daughter as Princess Augusta. Archie will eventually be eligible to succeed Harry as the Duke of Sussex.
Previously the Prince of Wales, Charles is now King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. He is also the king of the Commonwealth.
He prefers the term His Majesty over His Royal Highness. Charles is also the Supreme Governor of the Church of England and the Defender of the Faith. Currently, he is the Duke of Lancaster.
Camilla is the Queen as the King’s wife. She prefers Her Majesty above Her Royal Highness. She is a Queen Consort, like the Queen Mother, rather than a Queen Regnant, like Elizabeth II, who ruled in her own right.