Duke and
Duchess of Sussex show off
Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have introduced their newborn son to the world and revealed he is to be called Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor.
The name was announced shortly after the Queen met her eighth great-grandchild for the first time at
Windsor Castle, where earlier the couple showed him off to the cameras.
In a post on their Instagram account, the couple said: “The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are pleased to announce they have named their first born child Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor.
“This afternoon Their Royal Highnesses introduced Her Majesty The Queen to her eighth great-grandchild at Windsor Castle. The Duke of Edinburgh and The Duchesses’ mother were also present for this special occasion.”
It was posted alongside a black and white photograph of a beaming monarch looking at the baby cradled by Meghan, while Harry, Philip and Meghan’s mother Doria Ragland looked on.
At the photocall earlier,
Meghan Markle declared: “It’s magic, it’s pretty amazing. I have the two best guys in the world so I’m really happy.”
Speaking in St George’s Hall as
Prince Harry cradled their two-day-old child, she said of the the new seventh in line to the throne: “He has the sweetest temperament, he’s really calm.” Harry said: “I don’t know who he gets that from.”
The couple have chosen not to use a title for their son. As the first-born son of a duke, Archie could have become the Earl of Dumbarton – one of Harry’s subsidiary titles. Instead he will be Master Archie Mountbatten-Windsor. A source said: “They have chosen not to use a courtesy title”.
When his grandfather, Charles, becomes king, he will automatically become Prince Archie, as the title is automatically conferred on a child of a son of a sovereign. But he or his parents may choose not to use it.
Archie, with its shortened spelling, was the 18th most popular boy’s name in 2017, according to the Office For National Statistics, while Harrison was the 34th most popular.
It is a surprise choice, and was not among the bookmakers favourites, which were the more traditional royal names of Alexander, Arthur and Albert, as well as James and Philip.
The Mountbatten-Windsor surname is the result of compromise and concern over anti-German sentiment. George V changed the family name from Saxe-Coburg and Gotha to the bland, more acceptable Windsor at the height of the first world war.
It was after the Queen’s marriage to Prince Philip that Mountbatten - itself an anglicised version of the more German Battenberg – was added by the monarch to fulfil her husband’s deep-rooted desire for his descendants to bear his family name.
Archie was born at 5.26am on Monday, weighing 3.3kg (7lb 3oz). Meghan said on Wednesday: “He’s just been the dream, so it’s been a special couple of days.”
Meghan revealed that the Duke of Edinburgh may have been the first senior royal to see their son. “We just bumped into the duke as we were walking by, which was so nice. So it’ll be a nice moment to introduce the baby to more family, and my mum’s with us as well,” she said. Harry laughed as he said: “Another great-grandchild.”
Harry said of their son the couple were looking forward to spending some “precious time with him as he slowly, slowly starts to grow up”.
As they showed Archie’s face to the camera, Harry joked: “He’s already got a little bit of facial hair as well. Wonderful.”
The new royal, swaddled in a white blanket and wearing a delicate white knitted hat, appeared to sleep throughout his first official photocall, with his father regularly looking down at him.
Meghan, smiling throughout, said both parents were grateful for the support of the public, adding: “Thank you everybody for all the well wishes and kindness, it just means so much.”
The baby made his debut behind closed doors, with a small press pool of only one reporter, one photographer, and three camera operators, as well as the couple’s own private photographer and a royal household press officer photographer.
Asked who the baby resembled, Meghan said: “We’re still trying to figure that out.”
Harry said it was great being a parent. “Parenting is amazing. It’s only been two-and-a-half, three days, but we’re just so thrilled to have our own little bundle of joy.”
It has not been confirmed whether the baby was born at the couple’s Windsor residence, Frogmore Cottage. Some reports have claimed the delivery took place at the private Portland hospital in central London.
There has been criticism from some quarters over the couple’s handling of publicity over the birth, with some complaining that the royal PR machine took the media by surprise with the announcement that the duchess had gone into labour, eight hours after she had actually given birth.
Palace sources have said technical difficulties prevented crucial emails being sent to the media earlier.
The Daily Telegraph’s associate editor Camilla Tominey wrote that the “palaver smacks more of a blunder than conspiracy”. But, like others, she questioned whether the announcements had been timed to “catch the US morning news shows”.