The birth certificate of the eldest child of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, Prince Archie, left royal fans with quite the confusion over one particular detail.
On the six-year-old’s birth certificate, Harry’s full title reads ‘His Royal Highness Henry Charles Albert David Duke of Sussex’.
While spotting ‘Henry’ as opposed to ‘Harry’ may have caught you off guard this one instance, this is far from the first time the name swap has left people stumped.
Now, in case you weren’t in the know, the nickname ‘Harry’ is often used in these circumstances – even King Henry VIII was known as ‘Harry’ by his buddies (via Metro).
The father-of-two has also previously confessed he has no idea why his parents, King Charles III and Princess Diana, gave him the name ‘Henry’ in the first place.
Speaking previously with a child named Henry at the WellChild Awards, he told him: “My name is Henry as well. But everyone calls me Harry.”
But he went on to admit (via Entertainment Tonight): “I have no idea why.”
But that’s not the detail on Archie’s birth certificate that left people puzzled. Nope, it’s actually the fact that it totally omits the title ‘Prince’ altogether – something which seems pretty odd considering that Harry’s big brother, William, is listed as ‘Prince’ on the legal documentation for his three children – George, Charlotte and Louis.
“His Royal Highness Prince William Arthur Philip Louis Duke of Cambridge,” William’s listing says.
Charles, who was not yet king at this time, also had the royal title of prince, writing it as: “His Royal Highness Prince Charles Philip Arthur George Prince of Wales.”
According to Business Insider, it may well be because Harry’s legal name is ‘Henry Charles Albert David’; meanwhile, Vanity Fair adds that the title ‘Prince’ is a separate designation, and is most definitely not a part of his given name.
Oddly, however, the title ‘Prince’ was added to Harry’s official moniker when his engagement to Meghan was announced in November 2017.
An official palace statement released at the time read: “His Royal Highness Prince Henry of Wales and Ms. Meghan Markle Are Engaged to Be Married.”
Confusing, we know.
Archie was welcomed to the world back in 2019 with his little sister, Princess Lilibet, shortly joining him five years later in 2021 – the year after Harry and Meghan stepped down as working senior royals and relocated to the US.
