Much has been said this week about Royals and their seemingly confusing titles, after Meghan Markle revealed in a shocking new interview that she, Prince Harry, and their two children share a surname.
The surprising news has prompted some followers of the family to do some digging into the other monikers of the monarchy, even finding young Prince Louis’ birth certificate.
The youngest of the Wales’ children was born on 23 April 2018 to mother Kate Middleton (or ‘Catherine, the Princess of Wales’, as some know her), and father Prince William (known formally as ‘His Royal Highness Prince William Arthur Philip Louis Duke of Cambridge’).
The latter section of 42-year-old William’s name could also be switched out to ‘Prince of Wales’, following his ascension to the position after his grandmother The Queen’s death in 2022.
We know – it’s a bit of a mouthful.
It turns out, however, that Louis followed in his father’s footsteps when it came to his full title – as his birth certificate reveals.
Obtained by CBS at the time, the official document lists now-six-year-old Prince Louis’ ‘Name and surname’ as ‘His Royal Highness Prince Louis Arthur Charles of Cambridge’. Again, the latter section could be switched to ‘of Wales’, following Queen Elizabeth II’s passing.
While signing the document, mother-of-three Kate copied her husband’s title, and penned ‘Catherine Elizabeth, Her Royal Highness the Duchess of Cambridge’, as has been within her right since the couple wed in 2011.
Louis’ lengthy title matches that of his two eldest siblings – Prince George, 11, and Princess Charlotte, nine.
Prince Louis bears a pretty hefty full title (CBS)
Apparently, however, the trio also go by George Wales, Charlotte Wales, and Louis Wales whilst attending school – much like their father William and uncle Harry did in their youth.
The revelation regarding Louis’ full title, however, has seemingly left some confused by the Sussex childrens’ names.
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry welcomed their first child, a son named Archie, in May 2019, and the former Suits actress gave birth to a daughter, Lilibet, in June 2021.
Despite the fact that the pair are cousins with the Wales children, however – and are the grandkids of the current monarch King Charles III – they don’t share the same colossal titles.
In fact, as Meghan revealed this week, Archie and Lilibet don’t actually go by ‘His/Her Royal Highness’ at all.
Speaking to PEOPLE this week, the 43-year-old revealed they’ve actually incorporated her and Harry’s titles of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex into their kids’ surnames.
Meghan revealed this week that she shares a surname with her two kids (Toby Melville – Pool/Getty Images)
In fact, she broke the news that they’d been using ‘Sussex’ as their official surname for some time.
Meghan told the publication that the moniker was officially bestowed on the couple by Harry’s late grandmother The Queen on their 2018 wedding day.
The mum-of-two also claimed the name holds much significance to her.
“It’s our shared name as a family,” Meghan explained. “And I guess I hadn’t recognised how meaningful that would be to me until we had children. I love that that is something that Archie, Lili, H and I all have together.”
The former actress added that the title is ‘part of our love story’, admitting: “It means a lot to me.”
However, people have been left confused by Meghan’s use of ‘Sussex’, arguing her last name should be her husband’s legal surname that would appear on his own birth certificate.
“Her name is NOT Meghan Sussex”, one royal fan said, as per the Daily Mail. “Her name is technically Rachel Mountbatten-Windsor. Sussex is a county in England & part of a courtesy title-NOT her last name.”
Another added: “Meghan Markle married Henry Mountbatten Windsor not Harry Sussex!”
While Archie and Lili did use Mountbatten-Windsor as their last name before their grandfather King Charles ascended to the throne, and they then became Prince Archie of Sussex and Princess Lilibet of Sussex, they now informally go by Archie Sussex and Lili Sussex.
