Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s 1-Month-Old Daughter Lilibet Finally Added To Line of Succession Website

Jul 27, 2021 by apost team

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle welcomed their daughter, Lilibet "Lili" Diana Mountbatten-Windsor, on June 4, 2021. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex first announced that they were expecting their second child on Valentine’s Day in 2021, only to reveal the baby’s sex during the March 7 interview special “Oprah with Meghan and Harry.” 

Despite the tension between Harry and the royal family, Lilibet's birth was welcomed and celebrated by the family members, who released a statement saying they were "delighted" by her arrival. 

The royal family has not yet assigned a title for the newborn, but Meghan and Harry’s daughter will become a princess if Prince Charles becomes king, as grandchildren of the king are automatically granted prince and princess status, according to ELLE.

In this case, Meghan and Harry’s first-born child, 2-year-old Archie Mountbatten-Windsor, would also become a prince. With Queen Elizabeth II still at the helm, Archie remains seventh in line to the throne while Harry and Meghan’s baby girl is just behind her big brother. 

However, Harry and Meghan's departure from the royal family in March 2020 led to them giving up their own royal titles, and their outspokenness and criticism of the royal family led to further deterioration of Harry's relationship with his family.

Because Lilibet's name was not on the royal family's official succession list yet, royal fans wondered if this spelled the ultimate end of Harry's connection to his family. However, Lilibet's name is now seen in the updated list, and as predicted, she stands eighth in line to the throne. 

Lilibet's name is truly meaningful as all royal fans would know, and this was also addressed in a statement released by Harry and Meghan, "Lili is named after her great-grandmother, Her Majesty The Queen, whose family nickname is Lilibet. Her middle name, Diana, was chosen to honor her beloved late grandmother, The Princess of Wales."

ELLE reported that there were some reports after the name was announced that Harry had not asked the queen for permission to use "Lilibet," but a spokesperson for the Sussexes confirmed that this was not true. Following this, the couple also issued a legal letter to the BBC and accused the outlet of "false and defamatory" reporting for its story claiming Elizabeth wasn't consulted about the name. 

Harry and Meghan have been finding themselves in many inflammatory reports in the last few months due to their outspokenness and criticism of the royal family. Most recently, Harry's announcement that he will be releasing an "intimate" memoir has caused quite a stir in the UK. 

The memoir will be published by Penguin Random House and will be released in late 2022. Harry made a statement about his decision on July 19, 2021, and the book will be covering his life from his childhood in the public eye to his marriage to Meghan Markle and his role as a father. The financial details of this venture have not been disclosed, but Penguin Random House noted Harry will be donating all proceeds to charity.

Buckingham Palace did not release a statement for some time after this announcement but eventually told PEOPLE, "Any clarification about the book would be a question for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex."

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The memoir announcement is just one of Harry's many projects he has taken on since leaving the UK. Harry and Meghan have been using their platform to speak out about the challenges they have faced while they were senior working members of the royal family. On March 7, 2021, Meghan and Harry sat down for a tell-all interview with Oprah Winfrey that not only touched upon their lives post-Megxit but also revealed some of the struggles and issues the couples had surrounding Meghan marrying into the family, their son Archie and more. 

This interview caused an even greater rift between Harry and the rest of his family, which has only become more inflamed over the past few months as Harry has not held back on his criticism. He co-created the Apple TV+ docu-series "The Me You Can't See" where he also spoke against the royal family's culture, and in an interview with Dax Shephard on the "Armchair Expert," he described life as a royal as a mix between "'The Truman Show,' and being in a zoo."  

With so much being said against the royal family by Harry, royal fans were wondering if newborn Lilibet would actually be added to the line of succession. The fact that she had been missing from the list even after a month after being born caused some controversy according to ELLE. The question on everyone's mind was: is the exclusion an accident or was it a deliberate slight against the Duke and Duchess of Sussex?

However, Lilibet now stands securely 8th in line to the throne on the official royal website. It is likely that Meghan and Lilibet will be back in the UK for Elizabeth's Platinum Jubilee celebrations which are set to take place in February 2022. 

What do you think of Lilibet's addition to the line of succession? Tell us your thoughts, and be sure to pass this news onto others to inform them of the new developments as well.