Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s children are now entitled to royal titles in the wake of Queen Elizabeth II’s death.
Following the monarch’s passing on Thursday and King Charles III’s subsequent ascension to the throne, Archie Mountbatten-Windsor and Lilibet “Lili” Mountbatten-Windsor can now be referred to as Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet — but only if the royal family follows tradition.
The rules, established by King George V in 1917, state that the children and grandchildren of the monarch, in this case Charles, can claim titles.
The little ones’ parents, for their part, stopped using their His Royal Highness and Her Royal Highness titles in January 2020 when they stepped back from their senior royal duties.
In February of the following year, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex made their exit official.
Markle, 41, claimed in an explosive March 2021 interview with Oprah Winfrey that Archie was not made a prince due to a change in protocol, claiming that he was being treated differently than his cousins.
“While I was pregnant, they said they want to change the convention for Archie,” she claimed at the time.
The “Suits” alum shared her emotions over “the idea of our son not being safe, and also the idea of the first member of color in this family not being titled in the same way that other grandchildren would be.”
Markle explained that she wanted Archie to have a title for the security that came with it.
“All the grandeur surrounding this stuff is an attachment that I don’t personally have. I’ve been a waitress, an actress, a princess, a duchess, I’ve always just still been Meghan,” she noted, calling “Mom” her “most important” title.
Reports surfaced earlier this year that Charles — who has spoken often of slimming down the monarchy — has communicated to Harry, 37, that Archie, 3, and Lilibet, 1, will not be given titles.
Charles, 73, reportedly told his estranged son that he will change key documents preventing Archie and Lilibet from inheriting titles, which would normally be their birthright, the Daily Mail reported in July.
The children are currently sixth and seventh in line to the throne after Prince William, Prince George, Princess Charlotte, Prince Louis and Harry.