- Click to share on Facebook (Opens in a new window)
- Click to share on Twitter (Opens in a new window)
- Click here to share on LinkedIn (Opens in a new window)
- Click to email a friend (Opens in a new window)
What awaits British royalty 3:36
London (CNN) - After two weeks of turmoil within the royal family of Great Britain, the queen has reached an unprecedented agreement with Prince Henry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex.
After a series of difficult conversations about the couple's explosive announcement that they wanted to reduce their royal duties, the agreement ensures that they will not represent the queen as working members of the royal family, and will leave their titles of their royal highness (HRH, for its acronym in English).
It is a movement that the queen was not expected to do, and it is unprecedented for a monarch to ask his grandson to withdraw his title, but given the possibility of the Sussex signing trade agreements in the future, the need to separate their companies of the royal house were pressing.
The monarch has said she is "pleased" to have found a "constructive and supportive path for the couple," while Enrique said Sunday that "there really was no other option."
But what exactly is an HRH title and why are these three letters so significant?
- Prince Henry expresses 'great sadness' after the news that he and Meghan are no longer active members of the royal family
What is the title of your royal highness?
The letters represent his royal highness, a style used to denote the older members of the royal family.
From the beginning of the 18th century, it was customary to grant the title to the sons and grandsons (and later, daughters and granddaughters) of the monarch.
It is granted to royals at the discretion of the monarch at that time, but it was used liberally until World War I.
Then, in 1917, Jorge V restricted the number of royalty members who obtained the title, at a time when there were public suspicions about the German origins of the House of Windsor, quickly renamed that year as House of Saxony-Coburg and Gotha .
Queen Elizabeth II has softened those guidelines, granting the status of Her Royal Highness to several royals.
- Speeches, books and Instagram posts: how Enrique and Meghan could earn their own money
What happened to the titles of Enrique and Meghan?
Meghan received the title her royal highness, Duchess of Sussex after her marriage to Prince Henry in May 2018.
The full title of Henry was his royal highness, Duke of Sussex, count of Dumbarton and Baron Kilkeel.
But the couple will no longer use the part of their royal highness in their titles after the agreement they reached with the queen. Instead, they have agreed to be known as Henry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex.
In a subtle but important distinction, that does not mean that the titles have been removed, it just means that they will not use them or refer to themselves as HRH, since they will not represent the queen in the future. Prince Henry is still Prince Earry, and the couple remains the Duke and Duchess of Sussex.
The change will take effect from the second half of 2020, a real source told CNN.
Who has the title and who doesn't?
Today, the monarch's children and grandchildren traditionally obtain the title of their royal highness, although historically they have not been given to the granddaughters. The title does not extend to all members of the minor royalty, but it does include family members such as the queen's cousin, Prince Michael of Kent, who is ranked 48 on the throne.
Not everyone has accepted the offer to be their royal highness. Princess Anne, the queen's daughter, declined the title of her own children, Peter and Zara. That contrasts with Prince Andrew, who allowed his daughters, Beatrice and Eugenia, to take him.
It is more complicated when it comes to those who marry the royal family, such as Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex.
Both received the title of the queen after marrying princes Guillermo and Enrique, respectively. But those who marry royalty who are not so tall in the line of succession can miss the title. Jack Brooksbank, for example, did not get the title when he married Eugenie, even though she has the title of her royal highness.
Both Princess Eugenie of York (in the center) and Princess Beatrice of York (right) have the titles of her royal highness.
Has anyone else lost it?
Yes. After their divorce from Prince Charles, Enrique's mother, Diana, had his title removed from his royal highness. Instead, they gave him the courtesy title of "Diana, Princess of Wales."
Similarly, Sarah Ferguson, the Duchess of York, was also stripped of the title after her divorce from Prince Andrew.
Again, the situation is different for Enrique and Meghan: they are still royals but they won't be able to use their titles in the future.
What have they said about the decision?
Harry expressed "great sadness" on Sunday night, in his first public statement since Buckingham Palace announced that he and Meghan would give up their royal titles and not represent the queen as active members of the royal family.
"The United Kingdom is my home and a place I love," Harry said in a speech at a charity event in London. "That will never change".
"Our hope was to continue serving the queen, the community and my military associations, but without public funds," he said. "Unfortunately, it was not possible."
The queen issued a statement on Saturday revealing that the talks with the couple had taken place for months.
"I am pleased that together we have found a constructive and supportive path for my grandson and his family," the statement said.
- The princes Enrique and Guillermo say that the history of alleged intimidation of the Dukes of Cambridge to the Sussex is false
Can you retrieve the titles?
Yes, the style of his royal highness is indeed a gift from the monarch, so the queen or, in the future, Carlos or Guillermo could decide to restore it.
Moreover, the recently agreed situation will be reviewed in one year.
But assuming that all parties comply with the agreement, Enrique and Meghan will not recover their title of royal highness unless they step back into the royal family and begin to represent the monarch again.
What does it mean to them?
For former royalty members such as Diana and Sarah Ferguson, losing the title of their royal highness meant that they had not been invited to real events, and when they were, their lack of title affected things like who had priority and where they sat.
It is much less clear what it will mean for Enrique and Meghan. Enrique is the queen's grandson and Meghan has not divorced him, so they will probably still be invited to real occasions and their place in the royal hierarchy will not be affected.
But it is certain that it will have an impact on the new “Sussex Royal” brand, and the next question is how the public personalities of the couple will evolve.
The paper described on the Sussex Royal website after its first announcement does not align with the agreement announced by the Palace on Saturday.
They cannot present themselves as "their real highness" in any film, fashion, advertising or other companies that wish to undertake.
As a result, the entire Sussex Royal brand will likely have to be reworked, and we are waiting to see how it will look.
We may see the couple undertaking a commercial job, possibly in the media, but we will have to wait and see who it will be with or how it will be formed. We know that the couple has not yet signed any commercial agreement.
- CNN's Max Foster, Jack Guy and Amy Woodyatt contributed reporting.
Meghan Markle Prince Henry