New era for Meghan and Harry
London: The Duke and Duchess of Sussex will lose their HRH titles under the conditions of the ‘Megxit’ agreement just as Princess Diana did 24 years ago when she divorced Prince Charles.
The couple will now be known as Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex. It mirrors the title given to his mother when she was stripped of her HRH, becoming Diana, Princess of Wales in 1996 - one year before she died. She had originally been known as Lady Diana Spencer, often affectionately called Lady Di, when she began courting Prince Charles until the pair married in 1981 and she gained the royal title.
Buckingham Palace made the announcement which marked the conclusion of talks about Harry and Meghan’s future as senior members of the family and royal aides. The move comes after Harry and Meghan made a public statement on their Instagram account last week that they would be stepping down from their duties and moving to North America.
The change to their titles will take effect in the spring and will mean they no longer use
HRH. But in a statement posted on Harry and Meghan’s official website, SussexRoyal.com, they have continued to call themselves “Their Royal Highnesses”.
Buckingham Palace said in a statement on Saturday: “The Sussexes will not use their HRH titles as they are no longer working members of the Royal Family.”
Princess Diana, Harry’s mother, similarly dropped her HRH title 24 years ago.
Lady Diana Spencer had originally gained the title HRH Princess of Wales when she married Prince Charles in 1981. But following a turbulent relationship she ‘forfeited’ the HRH title when the couple divorced in 1996.
The Palace said at the time that she had relinquished the title voluntarily and from then on she was instead referred to as Diana, Princess of Wales.
Diana died just one year later and Buckingham Palace began discussions about whether to posthumously restore the HRH to her name.
But officials ultimately decided not to do so as her family said it would have been against her wishes. Daily Mail