Meghan to be baptised and confirmed at 36

MISS Markle is to be baptised into the Church of England at the age of 3 as she prepares to marry Harry.

She will also be confirmed ahead of the wedding, Kensington Palace announced yesterday. The decision will be seen as a nod to the Queen’s strong faith and commitment to traditions in her role as Supreme Governor of the Church.

The preparations mirror those of the Duchess of Cambridge, who was confirmed a month before her wedding to Prince William. Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby is seen as the most likely to officiate at the baptism and confirmation, which could takes place in St George’s Chapel, venue for the marriage ceremony.

The Most Rev Welby has also indicated he would be willing to conduct the wedding service. Kate is said to have received guidance from former Bishop of London Richard Chartres, who is regarded as one of the Prince of Wales’s favourite clerics. However, he retired earlier this year and no successor has been appointed.

Meghan has already begun the process of committing herself to the Church, Kensington Palace said. A person wishing to marry in a church is not required to be baptised or confirmed but will usually have a link to that church in some way.

‘She will be getting baptised for the wedding and taking sacraments as well as being confirmed and is going through that process at the moment,’ a Kensington Palace spokesman said.

Meghan already has strong Christian roots, being a member of the Protestant faith who went to a Catholic high school.

Her mother, Doria Ragland, is also Protestant while her father, Thomas Markle, is Episcopalian, part of the worldwide Anglican Communion.

One of Meghan’s paternal uncles, Fred, 75, is an Eastern Orthodox Catholic priest in America.