Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have announced the birth of their second child, Lilibet “Lili” Diana Mountbatten-Windsor.
According to Buckingham Palace, the Queen is “delighted” after the Duke and Duchess of Sussex made the announcement.
Princes Charles and William also congratulated the couple on social media.
Queen Elizabeth’s 11th great-grandchild was born on June 4 at a hospital in Santa Barbara, California.
Lilibet was the Queen’s nickname when she was a child.
Buckingham Palace said: “The Queen, the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall, and the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have been informed and are delighted with the news.”
Prince William and the Duchess and Cambridge said: “We are all delighted by the happy news of the arrival of baby Lili.”
Lilibet was born at 11:40 AM local time, weighing 7 lbs 11oz.
She is eighth in line to the throne – meaning Prince Andrew, who was born as second in line in 1960, moves down to ninth place.
Lilibet – the Queen’s family nickname – was coined when then-Princess Elizabeth was just a toddler and could not pronounce her name properly.
Her grandfather, King George V, would affectionately call her Lilibet, imitating her own attempts to say her name. It soon stuck and she became Lilibet to her family from then on.
Prince Harry and Meghan said their baby’s middle name, Diana, was chosen to honor her “beloved late grandmother”, the Princess of Wales.
In a message of thanks on the couple’s Archewell website, they said: “On June 4, we were blessed with the arrival of our daughter, Lili.
“She is more than we could have ever imagined, and we remain grateful for the love and prayers we’ve felt from across the globe.
“Thank you for your continued kindness and support during this very special time for our family.”
The message adds that anyone wishing to send gifts is asked to “support or learn more about” organizations working for women and girls.
They have not released any photos of their daughter.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle quit their roles as senior working royals in March 2020. Speaking last month, the duke said moving to the US had not been part of the plan, but he felt he had to put his family and mental health first.
As a result of the move, Lilibet is the most senior royal in the current line of succession to be born overseas.
Like her older brother Archie and most of the Queen’s great-grandchildren, Lilibet is not eligible to have a royal title.
Under rules laid out more than 100 years ago, Lilibet would not be allowed to be a princess nor an HRH until Prince Charles becomes king.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle will no longer use their HRH
titles, receive public funds for royal duties or formally represent Queen
Elizabeth II from spring, the Queen and Buckingham Palace announced on January
18 after reaching a new arrangement.
Earlier this month, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex announced their intention
“to step back as ‘senior’ members of the Royal Family and work to become
financially independent”.
The couple’s announcement prompted intensive discussions between the prince
and other senior royals, led by the Queen.
In 2019, Prince Harry and Meghan spoke of the difficulties of royal life and
media scrutiny, with the duke saying he feared his wife would fall victim to
“the same powerful forces” that led to his mother’s death.
In her statement on January 18, the Queen said she was pleased that a
“constructive and supportive way forward for [her] grandson and his
family” had been found.
The Queen said she recognized the “challenges” they had
experienced “as a result of intense scrutiny over the last two
years”.
Buckingham Palace said the duke and duchess understood that under the new
arrangement, they were required to withdraw from royal duties, including
official military appointments, but would continue to “uphold the values
of Her Majesty”.
According to the statement, Prince Harry and Meghan intend to repay £2.4 million
of taxpayer money used for the refurbishment of Frogmore Cottage.
The house in Windsor, for which the couple will pay rent, will remain their
family home as they divide their time between the UK and Canada.
Prince Harry and Meghan will continue to maintain their private patronages
and associations – the duke currently holds 16 patronages, including the
Invictus Games Foundation, the Royal Marines and the Rugby Football League; and
the duchess four – the National Theatre, the Association of Commonwealth
Universities, London-based animal charity Mayhew, and women’s charity Smart
Works.
They will no longer use HRH, an abbreviation of His/Her Royal Highness,
which is part of the title of some members of the Royal Family.
Speaking briefly to reporters at a summit in Berlin, UK’s PM Boris Johnson
said he had been confident the Royal Family would find a way forward for Prince
Harry and Meghan, adding: “I think
the whole country will want to join in wishing them the very best for the
future.”
However in comments made for a forthcoming Channel 5 documentary, Meghan’s
father, Thomas Markle, accused the couple of “destroying” the Royal
Family which he called “one of the greatest long-living institutions
ever”.
“Every young girl wants to become
a princess and she got that and now she’s tossing that away,” he said.
“It looks like she’s tossing that
away for money.”
Some questions about Prince Harry and Meghan’s future status remain
unanswered, including what their tax and immigration status will be in the UK
and Canada.
It is not yet known whether Meghan Markle still intends to gain British
citizenship, which would entail her spending a certain amount of time in the
UK.
The Sussexes have already begun a transition phase of living in Canada and
the UK.
The duchess is in Canada, a Commonwealth country, with son Archie, where the
Sussexes were for six weeks over the festive period.
On January 14, Meghan Markle visited a charity in Vancouver which campaigns for teenage girls living in poverty.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle will no longer use their HRH
titles, receive public funds for royal duties or formally represent Queen
Elizabeth II from spring, the Queen and Buckingham Palace announced on January
18 after reaching a new arrangement.
Earlier this month, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex announced their intention
“to step back as ‘senior’ members of the Royal Family and work to become
financially independent”.
The couple’s announcement prompted intensive discussions between the prince
and other senior royals, led by the Queen.
In 2019, Prince Harry and Meghan spoke of the difficulties of royal life and
media scrutiny, with the duke saying he feared his wife would fall victim to
“the same powerful forces” that led to his mother’s death.
In her statement on January 18, the Queen said she was pleased that a
“constructive and supportive way forward for [her] grandson and his
family” had been found.
The Queen said she recognized the “challenges” they had
experienced “as a result of intense scrutiny over the last two
years”.
Buckingham Palace said the duke and duchess understood that under the new
arrangement, they were required to withdraw from royal duties, including
official military appointments, but would continue to “uphold the values
of Her Majesty”.
According to the statement, Prince Harry and Meghan intend to repay £2.4 million
of taxpayer money used for the refurbishment of Frogmore Cottage.
The house in Windsor, for which the couple will pay rent, will remain their
family home as they divide their time between the UK and Canada.
Prince Harry and Meghan will continue to maintain their private patronages
and associations – the duke currently holds 16 patronages, including the
Invictus Games Foundation, the Royal Marines and the Rugby Football League; and
the duchess four – the National Theatre, the Association of Commonwealth
Universities, London-based animal charity Mayhew, and women’s charity Smart
Works.
They will no longer use HRH, an abbreviation of His/Her Royal Highness,
which is part of the title of some members of the Royal Family.
Speaking briefly to reporters at a summit in Berlin, UK’s PM Boris Johnson
said he had been confident the Royal Family would find a way forward for Prince
Harry and Meghan, adding: “I think
the whole country will want to join in wishing them the very best for the
future.”
However in comments made for a forthcoming Channel 5 documentary, Meghan’s
father, Thomas Markle, accused the couple of “destroying” the Royal
Family which he called “one of the greatest long-living institutions
ever”.
“Every young girl wants to become
a princess and she got that and now she’s tossing that away,” he said.
“It looks like she’s tossing that
away for money.”
Some questions about Prince Harry and Meghan’s future status remain
unanswered, including what their tax and immigration status will be in the UK
and Canada.
It is not yet known whether Meghan Markle still intends to gain British
citizenship, which would entail her spending a certain amount of time in the
UK.
The Sussexes have already begun a transition phase of living in Canada and
the UK.
The duchess is in Canada, a Commonwealth country, with son Archie, where the
Sussexes were for six weeks over the festive period.
On January 14, Meghan Markle visited a charity in Vancouver which campaigns
for teenage girls living in poverty.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have announced
they will step back as “senior” royals and work to become financially
independent.
In a statement, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex also
said they plan to split their time between the UK and North America.
According to the UK’s media outlets, no other royals – including Queen
Elizabeth II or Prince William – was consulted before the statement and
Buckingham Palace is “disappointed”.
Senior royals are understood to be “hurt” by the announcement.
In October 2019, Prince Harry and his wife publicly revealed their struggles
under the media spotlight.
In their unexpected statement on January 8, also posted on their Instagram
page, Prince Harry and Meghan said they made the decision “after many
months of reflection and internal discussions”.
“We intend to step back as
‘senior’ members of the Royal Family and work to become financially
independent, while continuing to fully support Her Majesty The Queen.”
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex said they plan
to balance their time between the UK and North America while “continuing
to honor our duty to the Queen, the Commonwealth, and our patronages”.
“This geographic balance will enable us to raise our
son with an appreciation for the royal tradition into which he was born, while
also providing our family with the space to focus on the next chapter,
including the launch of our new charitable entity.”
A Buckingham Palace spokeswoman said discussions with the royal couple on
their decision to step back were “at an early stage”, adding: “We understand their desire to take a
different approach, but these are complicated issues that will take time to
work through.”
Over Christmas, Prince Harry and Meghan took a six-week break from royal
duties to spend some time in Canada with their son, Archie, who was born in
May.
After returning to the UK on January 7, Prince Harry, 35, and Meghan, 38,
visited Canada’s High Commission in London to thank the country for hosting them
and said the warmth and hospitality they received was “unbelievable”.
During the visit, Meghan said it was an “incredible time” to enjoy
the “beauty of Canada”.
She said: “To see Archie go ‘ah’
when you walk by, and just see how stunning it is – so it meant a lot to
us.”
Former actress Meghan Markel lived and worked in Toronto during her time
starring in the popular American drama Suits,
and she has several Canadian friends.
Prince Harry’ move was compared by specialists to Edward VIII’s abdication
in 1936 in order to marry twice-divorced American Wallis Simpson.
The Duke of Sussex is sixth in line to the throne – behind Prince Charles,
Prince William and his three children.
In an ITV documentary in 2019, Meghan Markle admitted motherhood was a
“struggle” due to intense interest from newspapers.
Prince Harry also responded to reports of a rift between him and his brother
William, the Duke of Cambridge, by saying they were on “different
paths”.
In October, Meghan began legal action against the Mailon Sunday over a
claim that it unlawfully published one of her private letters.
Prince Harry also began legal action against the owners of the Sun, the defunct News of the World, and the Daily Mirror, in relation to alleged phone-hacking.
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