Since news broke yesterday that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle had christened their daughter as Princess Lilibet Diana, royal fans have been eager to hear from Buckingham Palace about the change.

"I can confirm that Princess Lilibet Diana was christened on Friday, March 3 by the Archbishop of Los Angeles, the Rev John Taylor," a spokesperson for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex told Cosmopolitan UK on 8 March.

Buckingham Palace later confirmed that the royal website "will now be updated in due course" – confirming that Archie and Lilibet will officially be known as Prince and Princess.

So, what's behind the change?

Following the passing of Queen Elizabeth II in September of last year, there was a shift in the line of succession.

As we already know, Prince Charles became King Charles III and Camilla became the Queen Consort and – under rules established by King George V in 1917 – the children and grandchildren of a sovereign have the right to the title of HRH and Prince or Princess. As a result, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s children are now entitled to royal titles, making them Prince Archie Mountbatten-Windsor and Princess Lilibet Diana Mountbatten-Windsor.

Everyone's clicking on...

prince harry, archie, first wordpinterest
WPA Pool//Getty Images

Previously, during an interview with Opray Winfrey, Meghan claimed that Archie had been denied a title and expressed her shock at being told he wouldn’t receive police protection because of this. "They were saying they didn't want him to be a prince or princess, which would be different from protocol, and that he wasn't going to receive security," she alleged

When asked about whether Archie being a Prince was important to her, Meghan said: “If it meant he was going to be safe, then of course."

Lettermark
Hanna Ibraheem
Deputy Beauty Editor
Hanna Ibraheem is the Deputy Beauty Editor here at Cosmopolitan UK. In her spare time, you’ll find her scrolling through TikTok for the latest beauty hacks, eating Indian food and binge-watching old episodes of RuPaul’s Drag Race.
Headshot of Jade Biggs
Jade Biggs
Freelance Writer
Jade Biggs (she/her) is one of Cosmopolitan UK's freelance writers, working across all sections including entertainment, beauty, body, and sex and relationships. She previously held the position of Features Writer, covering everything from breaking news and the latest royal gossip, to the health and fitness trends taking over your TikTok feed. Jade has a degree in journalism and has been a journalist and content editor for ten years, interviewing leading researchers, high-profile influencers, and industry experts in that time. She is a cat mom to four fur babies and is obsessed with Drag Race, bottomless brunches, and wearing clothes only suitable for Bratz dolls. Follow her on Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn.