Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have devoted their lives to raising their children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet. The couple welcomed their firstborn child while still members of the Royal Family, but when Lilibet arrived, they had been out of the Firm for a little more than a year.
Archie and Lilibet probably don’t know much about their parents’ rift with the royals and will most likely not have a clue about it for years. Unfortunately, this could negatively affect them in the future as their relationship with their royal cousins and other family members is non-existent.
Prince William and Kate Middleton have three children, and Harry and Meghan possibly would as well if it wasn’t for a tragic miscarriage. Archie and Lilibet are growing up fast, but is it possible that the Sussexes will have a third child? Let’s find out what Harry and Meghan have said about it.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle left the royal family to live a more private life in the US, pursuing a different life than the one behind the palace walls. For one thing, the couple wanted a different future for their son Archie and, later, daughter Lilibet, who was born in the US.
Already when Archie was born, there were signs that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex didn’t want to do things like the rest of the Royal Family was used to. Before Archie’s birth, the couple had moved to Frogmore Cottage at Windsor, and Meghan’s mother had flown in from the US to stay with them.
On May 6, 2019, Harry and Meghan’s son Archie was born at The Portland Hospital in London. As with the birth of any royal child, it was a monumental occasion – but Harry and Meghan decided to approach things differently.
In her book The New Royals: Queen Elizabeth’s Legacy and the Future of the Crown, Nicholl described Harry as “almost morbidly obsessed” with keeping Archie’s birth as secret as possible.
Prince Harry & Meghan Markle’s children Archie & Lilibet
However, as millions of royal fans and most of the public sought information about the little boy, the longing for secrecy was ignored as it was part of the “unwritten contract between the royals and the public.”
“Behind the scenes, matters were so fraught that more than one official — as I know from personal experience — was reduced to tears of frustration and despair,” Rebecca English, royal editor of the Daily Mail, added.
Harry and Meghan didn’t want any of the fuss that, for example, Prince William and Kate Middleton went through when they welcomed a child. It’s custom for senior members of the Royal Family to pose for a picture for the press outside of the hospital with the newborn child, but that was something the Sussexes had a plan to avoid.
Prince William, Harry, and William’s children were all born at St Mary’s Hospital; thus, the traditional first baby photos were taken there. However, Meghan’s doctor worked at Portland Hospital, so it made sense to give birth there. Also, the Sussexes were told the place would make photos impossible due to safety considerations around the entrance.
“Harry had always enjoyed outfoxing the media,” royal author Katie Nicholl wrote in The New Royals: Queen Elizabeth’s Legacy and the Future of the Crown.
“He and Meghan were thrilled to be safely delivered of their son in London’s private Portland hospital even before the palace press office had confirmed the duchess was in labor.”
Prince Harry ate chicken while Meghan was in labor
Although Harry and Meghan wanted to keep as many things as possible private about Archie’s birth, the Duke decided to share some details into the day their first son was born. In Spare, Harry described the extraordinary scene at the Portland Hospital where he decided to get high on laughing gas to calm himself down.
“But I saw two ways of enhancing my calm. One: Nando’s chicken (brought by our bodyguards). Two: A canister of laughing gas beside Meg’s bed. I took several slow, penetrating hits,” Harry wrote in his tell-all book.
“Meg was so calm. I was calm too,” he added: “Meg, bouncing on a giant purple ball, a proven way of giving nature a push, laughed and rolled her eyes. I took several more hits, and now I was bouncing too.”
Harry then explained that a nurse tried giving his wife the gas for the pain, but he had already consumed it all.
“I could see the thought slowly dawning. Gracious, the husband’s had it all. ‘Sorry,” I said meekly.’”
Eventually, doctors decided to give Meghan an epidural to ease the pain.
“The anesthetist hurried in. Off went the music, on went the lights. Whoa. Vibe change.”
Though there was an initial worry that Archie had been tangled up in his umbilical cord, he emerged unharmed – reducing both Harry and Meghan to tears.
Princess Lilibet’s name sparked controversy
Prince Archie was less than a year old when his parents decided to leave the Royal Family for good and left for North America. After settling in Montecito, California, their family grew.
On Sunday, June 6, 2021, Harry and Meghan announced their daughter had arrived. Although her birth overjoyed many, it also led to some controversy.
She was named Lilibet after the nickname bestowed upon her great-grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II. The late monarch had called herself Lilibet as a toddler since she had trouble pronouncing her name.
“Even naming this child sparked a diplomatic scuffle. Hating even to think about the admittedly labyrinthine rules of protocol that surrounded the British royal family, Meghan, and Harry called her Lilibet, apparently in the belief that it would be a wonderful surprise for her great-grandmother, Queen Elizabeth,” royal expert Tom Quinn wrote in his book Gilded Youth An Intimate History of Growing Up in the Royal Family.
Meghan suffered from a miscarriage before Lilibet pregnancy
“That Harry did not have the sense to predict that this would cause trouble is beyond belief. He surely would have known that appropriating the monarch’s beloved childhood nickname would be perceived by many as disrespectful and intrusive in a way that naming their daughter Elizabeth would have not been.”
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have, like any parent worldwide, been overjoyed about the arrival of their children. However, the time up to Lilibet’s birth had beside happiness also been filled with grief.
Around a year before Lilibet’s birth, Harry and Meghan had gone through a traumatic experience. In 2020, Meghan fell pregnant again, though tragically lost the baby.
Four months later, in a personal article, Meghan revealed how she had felt a sharp pain and was admitted to the hospital.
“Hours later, I lay in a hospital bed, holding my husband’s hand. I felt the clamminess of his palm and kissed his knuckles, wet from both our tears. Staring at the cold white walls, my eyes glazed over. I tried to imagine how we’d heal. Losing a child means carrying an almost unbearable grief,” Meghan wrote.
Now, years on, the scars remain. A source told OK! Magazine that Meghan is naturally feeling sadness during that time of the year when the anniversary of her miscarriage approaches.
However, love conquers all, and her family brings her immense joy.
“She feels so blessed to have Archie and Lili and the family she and Harry have created. But naturally, as the anniversary of her miscarriage approaches, she does have sadness. The date is very poignant for her,” the source told OK!.
Meghan Markle is “sad” that her children are growing up
In recent months, The Duchess has had more time to focus on her work, not least her lifestyle brand, American Riviera Orchard. The source tells OK! Magazine that Meghan considers it crucial to show her children that “mummies work as well.”
“But her family life will always come first, she will fit work in around the children’s schedules so she is there for them when they need her and she just wants to make the most of and cherish every moment with them as they grow up,” the source explained.
After their royal exit, Harry and Meghan have embarked on several business ventures. Not all of them have succeeded, but earlier this year, they took on a “royal” mission.
Harry and Meghan visited Nigeria on a three-day tour in May to promote the Invictus Games. While they enjoyed their trip, two people were missing. Archie and Lilibet stayed in the US, though reports suggest that the children could join their parents on future journeys abroad.
“Meghan doesn’t like being away from her children as she doesn’t want to miss a thing with them growing up so fast,” a source told OK!.
“With Lili turning three, it’s really got Meghan and Harry thinking about their future and how quickly the children are growing up. Meghan especially feels that her babies are no longer babies, and like most mums, it makes her slightly sad and wistful that the baby years have come to an end.”
Will Prince Harry & Meghan Markle have a third child?
So, Meghan Markle is sad that her children are growing up, but perhaps the couple has thought about getting a third child? It’s been three years since Lilibet was born, and some have wondered whether Harry and Meghan will follow Prince William and Kate Middleton in having three children. Will it happen? Prince Harry and Meghan Markle seem to have a rather firm opinion about it.
Back in 2019, when Archie was just one year old, Prince Harry was interviewed in Vogue Magazine about using one technique to help the environment, which some might find controversial. Harry stated he simply feels that there should be a limit on the number of children one can have.
“I think, weirdly, because of the people that I’ve met and the places that I’ve been fortunate enough to go to, I’ve always had a connection and a love for nature. I view it differently now, without question. But I’ve always wanted to try and ensure that, even before having a child and hoping to have children..,” Harry said.
“What more can you ask for?”
The interviewer, Dr Jane Goodall, replied, “Not too many!” and laughed. Harry continued, “Two, maximum! But I’ve always thought: this place is borrowed. And, surely, being as intelligent as we all are, or as evolved as we all are supposed to be, we should be able to leave something better behind for the next generation.”
Meghan Markle spoke about how many children she would like in the infamous Oprah Winfrey interview in 2021, which was the first time the Sussexes spoke out about their negative experiences while still members of the Royal Family.
“[I’m] just grateful to have any child. Any, one or two, would have been amazing but to have a boy and then a girl what more can you ask for? Now we’ve got our family, we got the four of us and our two dogs,” Meghan told Oprah.
Harry added that they were “done” with two children, to which Meghan replied, “Two is it.”
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle appear very firm about their decision to stop having children. But who knows, a new prince or princess will be born in Montecito in the future.
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