What Title Will Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's Baby Get?
A royal expert breaks it down for us.
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry‘s baby may not be called Royal Highness — she will first need permission from the Queen.
A little history: “King George V introduced a rule in 1917 that means their baby will need special permission from the Queen to become an HRH,” reports People. “Only the eldest son of the Queen’s first-born, Prince Charles, is entitled to be an HRH — no younger sons or daughters. But in December 2012, before Prince William and Kate Middleton had their first child, Prince George, the Queen used the Letters Patent so she could give all of their children an HRH title. The Letters Patent is a method that allows the sovereign to give orders without involving Parliament.”
But the Queen has yet to give permission for Harry and Meghan’s baby to carry the title HRH. So for now, if they have a boy he will could have the title Duke. A girl will not have a title unless the Queen grants permission.
Personal Space called British etiquette and royal protocol expert William Hanson, who says it’s unlikely their much anticipated child will have a his/her “royal highness” title at all.
“It is unlikely (although not impossible) that Prince Harry and Meghan’s child and future children will be given the status of HRH,” William explains, adding that, “Prince Harry’s great great grandfather George V issued letters patent in 1917 proclaiming that only the eldest son of the eldest son of the Prince of Wales (the direct heir to the throne) would be conferred the style HRH.”
He continues: “In 2013, however, The Queen issued a slight amendment to this stating that all children of the eldest son of the Prince of Wales would be entitled to the style HRH, which is why we have Their Royal Highnesses Princes George and Louis and Princess Charlotte.”
But now it’s all about Prince Charles. “When he ascends, Prince Charles is thought to want a smaller, more streamlined monarchy and having multiple and many seemingly unnecessary people with HRH titles may not send the message that Prince Charles wants,” William says. “Prince Harry has also previously said he would want his children to have as regular and relatively normal upbringing as possible. Requesting his grandmother give his children HRH status may be somewhat counterintuitive.”
