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Queen Elizabeth II: "If she hadn't supported that, you wouldn't have used the name"
Photo: Steve Parsons / AP
Lilibet Diana Mountbatten-Windsor was only born five days, but her name has already caused quite a stir - and now also for trouble.
The British BBC reports, with reference to an anonymous source from the palace, that Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan had not asked Queen Elizabeth II before the birth if they could name their daughter Lilibet. Lilibet has been the nickname of the 95-year-old monarch since childhood. But since she is only called that within the family, the nickname is something very personal. Journalist Angela Levin criticized the naming as "impolite" shortly after the birth.
Harry and Meghan are now defending themselves against the allegations that they had ignored Queen Elizabeth II when naming.
"The Duke (Harry) spoke to his family before the announcement, his grandmother was the first family member he called," said a spokeswoman for the couple.
During this conversation, he had expressed the hope of naming the girl Lilibet in honor of his grandmother, the spokeswoman continued.
She added, "If she hadn't supported that, they wouldn't have used the name."
A connection to the palace
Harry and Meghan's daughter, who bears the name Diana in addition to Lilibet, was born last Friday in a clinic in California.
In their birth announcement, the couple made it clear that the Queen had stood by the name of godmother: "Lili was named after her great-grandmother, Her Majesty the Queen, whose nickname in the family is Lilibet."
Experts then expressed doubts as to whether the name could be an offer of peace to the palace or too intimate.
Harry and Meghan had already withdrawn from the immediate royal family last year with their now two-year-old son Archie and relocated to the United States.
Since a sensational interview by the two of them, in which they complained about a lack of support from the royals and about racism, the relationship with the royal family has been clouded.
ptz / dpa