Harry And Meghan's Wedding: A Royal Baby?

In his memoir, Spare, Prince Harry revealed that he and Meghan Markle shared the news of her first pregnancy with family members at his cousin Princess Eugenie's wedding in October 2018. The couple got married in May 2018 and welcomed their son, Archie Harrison, in 2019. In his book, Harry described how he and Meghan chose Eugenie's wedding to make the announcement as wider members of the royal family would be in attendance.

Harry and Meghan's wedding

The wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle took place on Saturday 19 May 2018 in St George's Chapel at Windsor Castle in the United Kingdom. The groom is a member of the British royal family, and the bride is American and previously worked as an actress, blogger, charity ambassador, and advocate. The wedding was widely reported as being significant for its departure from tradition, and for its inclusion of African-American culture in the service.

On the morning of the wedding, Prince Harry's grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II, conferred upon him the titles of Duke of Sussex, Earl of Dumbarton, and Baron Kilkeel. Markle became a princess of the United Kingdom and gained the style Her Royal Highness and titles Duchess of Sussex, Countess of Dumbarton, and Baroness Kilkeel. The wedding dress was designed by British designer Clare Waight Keller under the fashion house Givenchy. The ceremony was officiated by Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury, using the standard Anglican church service for Holy Matrimony. The royal family announced that they would pay for the wedding, with the overall cost expected to be around £32 million.

Harry and Meghan shared their pregnancy news at Princess Eugenie's wedding in October 2018, a few months after their own wedding. They told the royal family at the wedding reception, before publicly announcing the pregnancy three days later.

Princess Eugenie's wedding

Princess Eugenie married Jack Brooksbank on 12 October 2018 at St George's Chapel in Windsor Castle. The wedding took place just a few months after her cousin Prince Harry married Meghan Markle at the same venue.

The bride wore a long-sleeved ivory dress with a low back, designed by Peter Pilotto and Christopher de Vos. The low-back design was a special request from Eugenie to honour her scar from surgery she had at 12 years old to correct her scoliosis. She also wore a tiara lent to her by the Queen, the Greville Emerald Kokoshnik Tiara, made of brilliant and rose-cut diamonds pavé-set in platinum, with six emeralds on either side.

The groom wore a morning suit with a tie pin featuring the white rose of York and the Padparadscha sapphire, given to him by Eugenie.

The bridal party included Princess Eugenie's sister, Princess Beatrice, as maid of honour, and Princess Charlotte, Savannah Phillips, Isla Phillips, and Mia Tindall as bridesmaids, among others. Prince George was a pageboy.

Princess Eugenie and Jack Brooksbank's wedding ceremony was officiated by the Dean of Windsor, David Conner, using the standard Anglican church service for Holy Matrimony. The ceremony included readings from St Paul's Letter to the Colossians and The Great Gatsby, as well as music by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and hymns such as "Glorious Things of Thee Are Spoken" and "Love Divine, All Loves Excelling".

Following the ceremony, the newlyweds took a carriage ride through Windsor and then joined their guests for a stand-up reception hosted by the Queen at Windsor Castle. The reception included a variety of finger foods, such as mini bites of beef in Yorkshire pudding and Scotch eggs. The couple's five-tier wedding cake was a red velvet and chocolate confection decorated with leaves in shades of orange, red, yellow, and green to fit the autumn theme.

The celebrations continued the next day with a festival-themed bash in Windsor Park, which included food stalls, a performance by Ellie Goulding, and carnival rides.

Harry and Meghan's first pregnancy announcement

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle announced their first pregnancy in October 2018 at Princess Eugenie's wedding. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex got married in May 2018 and welcomed their first child, Archie Harrison, in 2019.

In his memoir, Spare, Harry wrote that he and Meghan hoped to start a family after their wedding. A few months later, they learned that Meghan was expecting, and they decided to share the news with the royal family at Princess Eugenie's wedding. The couple intercepted Harry's father, King Charles III, in his Windsor office before the drinks reception and told him the happy news. They then headed to St George's Hall to tell Prince William and Kate Middleton.

Harry wrote that they chose Eugenie's wedding to make the announcement because wider members of the royal family would be in attendance, giving them a chance to pull aside family members one by one and tell them [their] good news. He also noted that they felt obliged to tell his family in person before leaving for their tour of Australia.

Although the couple didn't make the news public until a few days later, Princess Eugenie's mother, Sarah Ferguson, was reportedly furious that they had "upstaged" the bride. Despite this, Harry and Meghan's announcement was met with joy and congratulations from the royal family.

Harry and Meghan's second pregnancy announcement

On Valentine's Day in 2021, Harry and Meghan announced their second pregnancy with a black-and-white photo taken by their friend and longtime photographer, Misan Harriman. The photo was taken remotely via iPad and features a smiling, barefoot Harry looking lovingly at Meghan, who cradles her baby bump as she rests in his lap. Meghan wears a flowing dress by Carolina Herrera, first made when she was pregnant with Archie. The couple shared the happy news on Valentine's Day, after Meghan revealed she had suffered a miscarriage the previous July.

In the photo, Harry wears a light-coloured button-down and blue jeans, while Meghan wears a bright yellow dress. The couple are pictured lying in a meadow, under a Jacaranda tree. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are "overjoyed" to be expecting their second child together, a spokesperson for the couple told People. Their son Archie, who will turn two in May, will be a big brother.

The pregnancy announcement photo was taken during a remote photo session in 2021, when Meghan was pregnant with their daughter, Lilibet, who is now two. The couple's friend and photographer Harriman later posted the original colour version of the photo on Instagram, along with the metadata to prove that he took the intimate portrait on an Apple iPad. He also revealed that the tree in the photo was a Jacaranda tree, not a willow tree, as had been previously reported.

Harry and Meghan's children

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have two children: Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor and Lilibet Diana Mountbatten-Windsor. Archie was born on May 6, 2019, in London, England, and Lilibet was born on June 4, 2021, in Santa Barbara, California.

Archie and Lili did not receive the titles of prince and princess when they were born because they were great-grandchildren of the monarch. However, once their grandfather, King Charles III, ascended the throne, they were granted the titles of prince and princess. In February 2024, Archie and Lili's names were updated again when Harry and Meghan adopted Sussex as their family surname. Their official names are now Prince Archie of Sussex and Princess Lilibet of Sussex.

Archie is known for having a calm temperament and was named after the shortened version of the name Archibald, meaning genuine and bold or brave. Harrison, his middle name, means "son of Henry" or "son of Harry." Archie has also been described as having an "incredible sense of humour" by his father, who also revealed that one of Archie's first words was "grandma," after "mama," "papa," and "crocodile."

Lilibet, or Lili for short, was named after Queen Elizabeth II, whose family nickname was Lilibet. Her middle name, Diana, was chosen to honour her late grandmother, Princess Diana. Like her father and brother, Lili has red hair. She is said to be "very chilled" and was walking by the time she was a year old.

Harry and Meghan have expressed their desire for their children to have relationships with the royal family, and they hope to give them a "meaningful" connection. They also emphasise the importance of moral character and manners with their children.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are focused on their charitable work through the Archewell Foundation, supporting access to education, women's empowerment, and fighting racial injustice. They are also looking into schools for Archie and Lili, which has sparked some criticism due to the high costs involved.

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