Prince Harry’s children ‘have not been invited to Coronation yet’

The inclusion of Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet will be on the cards once the Duke and Duchess of Sussex confirm their attendance, it is understood

Eleanor Noyce
Sunday 12 March 2023 10:34 EDT
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Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s children have not yet been invited to King Charles III’s coronation, The Telegraph reports.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex reportedly received their invitation via “email correspondence” following speculation over whether they would be in attendance. However, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet are understood to have not been invited yet.

The couple was informed that the inclusion of Archie and Lilibet would be discussed in the event that they confirmed their own attendance. At present, the staff at Buckingham Palace have been told to work on the basis that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex will be present.

King Charles III requested that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle vacate their UK home, Frogmore Cottage, earlier this month, facilitating questions about their attendance which were later dispelled.

A spokesperson for the couple confirmed that they “recently received email correspondence from His Majesty’s office regarding the coronation”, but it’s not yet clear whether the pair will be in attendance.

“An immediate decision on whether the Duke and Duchess will attend will not be disclosed by us at this time”, the spokesperson confirmed to The Times.

Harry and Meghan leave a service of thanksgiving for Queen Elizabeth II at St Paul’s Cathedral in 2022
Harry and Meghan leave a service of thanksgiving for Queen Elizabeth II at St Paul’s Cathedral in 2022 (AP)

According to The Telegraph, the couple is “weighing up the logistics” alongside the “personal implications” of attending the ceremony in the midst of a family disagreement over Frogmore and the wider allegations made in Spare.

One royal source noted that Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet are “very young”, with the Prince and Princess of Wales still “pondering” over Prince Louis’s attendance. They are thought to be likely to bring him, though the four-year-old was not present at Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth’s funeral last year.

Meanwhile, the Queen Consort’s grandchildren will have an official role at the ceremony, it has been confirmed. Her son, Tom Parker Bowles, has two teenage children and her daughter, Laura Lopes, has one 15-year-old daughter and 13-year-old twins.

Harry and Meghan pictured with son Archie
Harry and Meghan pictured with son Archie (PA)

The Queen Consort was supposedly in favour of her grandchildren carrying the canopy to be placed over her during the anointing, though Buckingham Palace denied this suggestion.

A royal source further argued that it would be “wholly improper” for discussions about the role of Camilla’s grandchildren to be taking place before King Charles III’s.

The Coronation of King Charles III and The Queen Consort will take place at Westminster Abbey on 6 May, conducted by the Archbishop of Canterbury. The service is described to “reflect the Monarch’s role today”, looking towards the future of the Royal Family whilst retaining a sense of tradition.

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