Will Harry and Meghan’s new baby have a royal title?

Harry and Meghan are expecting their second child - but will the newest member of the royal family be receiving a royal title?

• Meghan and Harry announced they are expecting their second child on Valentine's Day
• Their newborn will be the Queen’s great-grandchild so will the baby have a royal title?
• This comes after the Royal News that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are to help rebuild women’s shelter in Texas

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex announced that they were expecting their second child (opens in new tab) on Valentine's Day 2021. They've also recently announced that they are staying in the US indefinitely as they step back from royal duties. This has lead to a lot of fans questioning whether their baby will receive a royal title?

When the couple had their first child, Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor, in 2019, the couple decided that they would not use a title for their son. A royal source stated at the time, “They have chosen not to use a courtesy title."

Archie could have used one of Prince Harry’s subsidiary titles such as Earl of Dumbarton, or he could have used 'Lord' as a title. However, the couple decided against this. Their firstborn's full title is Master Archie Mountbatten-Windsor, therefore it is likely that their second child’s name will follow a similar format.  

Harry and Meghan’s second child will be eighth in line for the throne, although this depends on whether The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge decide to have a fourth child. (opens in new tab) Archie and his unborn sibling can be granted honorary titles as grandchildren of the reigning monarch when Prince Charles becomes King. 

However, this will be Meghan and Harry’s decision and based on their previous choices when it comes to titles, it’s unlikely that they will elect to use a title for their child. 

This isn’t the first time that royals have decided not to give their children royal titles. Princess Anne decided that her children should not be princes or princesses and her children Peter Phillips and Zara Tindall grew up without royal titles. 

Princess Eugenie’s newborn son August Philip Hawke Brooksbank, who was named after various royals (opens in new tab), also doesn’t have a title. Her son with non-royal husband Jack Brooksbank was born recently and named. 

Fans also suspect that if Harry and Meghan's second child is a daughter, she will be named after Harry's late mother Princess Diana. The name Diana currently in top spot for Prince Harry and Meghan's baby name according to latest odds. (opens in new tab)