Don't call them Mountbatten-Windsor anymore.
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry have indeed changed the names of their children Archie and Lilibet, a source close to the couple revealed to The
Times
this Thursday, February 15.
Both parents in fact replaced the name “Mountbatten-Windsor” with that of “Sussex”.
Information revealed in light of the launch of the couple's new site, Sussex.com.
This decision, a source of “pride” for the Duke and Duchess, would aim to “unify” their family.
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“The reality behind the new site is very simple: it brings together the work of the Sussexes and for the first time, the name of the site reflects the fact that the family has shared the same name since the king's coronation,” a witness told the
Times
.
This is important for any family.
“It represents their unification and it’s a source of pride for them.”
Archie and Lilibet were originally named Mountbatten-Windsor after the last name of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip.
But since the coronation of Charles III, they have been called Archie and Lilibet Sussex.
Also read: Meghan Markle announces the release of her new podcast
A lively controversy
However, since the name change of the site Archewell.com to Sussex.com, some have criticized Meghan and Harry for “taking advantage” of their titles of nobility, namely Duke and Duchess of Sussex.
To the point that the royal family could decide to close this page, some have indicated, in the event that the Sussexes use this distinction for commercial purposes.
The titles of nobility of Archie and Lilibet have, moreover, been a source of controversy on several occasions in the past.
In an interview with Oprah Winfrey in March 2021, Meghan Markle lamented that her son had not inherited the title of prince – although he was not the eldest son of a future king.
The Duchess of Sussex thus underlined that Archie benefited neither from this distinction nor from official protection.
At the same time, anonymous sources affirmed that the couple did not want “any title for their children” at the time, and had informed the royal family of this.
Another witness confirmed to the
Telegraph
that the Sussexes "never raised an issue" about the matter and that Prince Harry was "categorical" that Archie "should be raised without a title of nobility, as the children of his cousins, Peter and Zara Phillips.
In June 2021, Meghan Markle would also have refused the title of Earl of Dumbarton for Archie, on the pretext that it contained the word “
dumb
” (translate “stupid”).