Prince Harry finds himself once again back in the UK. The estranged prince attended the WellChild Awards on Monday, but for safety reasons, kept the location a secret until the day of the event. Meanwhile, his wife, Meghan Markle, and children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet, stayed in the US and reportedly won’t set foot on UK soil until the Sussexes are given the police protection they desire.
Harry and Meghan’s children don’t yet know about their royal heritage, nor do they know that their parents are locked in a feud with their father’s side of the family. Moreover, the sad truth is that Archie and Lilibet share little-to-no relationship with their royal cousins, Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis. As things stand today, it looks as if they won’t get to know them—or even see them— for a very long time.
As mentioned, protection and security issues are the main reasons why Harry doesn’t want to bring his wife and children to the UK. When Archie and Lilibet turn 18, they are free to do what they want, but as the feud with the Royal Family has no foreseeable end in sight, it’s difficult to envisage a time where the Sussex children ever get to see their relatives.
Adding to the bleakness of it all, a royal expert has painted an even sadder picture of Archie and Lilibet’s UK future.
Prince Harry and his family’s life in the US is barely comparable to the royal one they might have lived in the UK. For one the weather’s better in California, but the fact that Harry and Meghan’s children don’t have to deal with the paparazzi press on a daily basis is most likely the most obvious advantage of living Stateside.
Prince Archie & Princess Lilibet
Though Harry and Meghan are active in protecting their children from the public eye as they grow up behind the walls of their $14 million mansion – so-labeled “Fort Knox” — the couple’s actions have given the press no choice but to talk about the kids in at least some capacity. After all, Harry and Meghan have continued to live a very public life in the US, and even featured their children in the Netflix series they released nearly two years ago. Archie and Lilibet are, to some extent, the talk of the town.
Following their move across the Atlantic, Harry and Meghan are said to have decided to endeavor to give their children as normal a childhood as possible. According to a friend of the Sussexes, who chose to remain anonymous, there is one heartbreaking reason behind their decision not to expose their children to unnecessary publicity.
“I think every parent wants to share their kid with the world, but they just can’t,” a friend, referring to Harry’s struggle to get enhanced security in the UK, the friend told US Magazine.
“William’s kids, for example, have way more safety, even though they’re recognizable. And the same doesn’t apply to Meghan and Harry’s children. They know the world wants to see [them but] I would expect them to live smaller lives until that gets sorted, if it ever does.”
Moreover, a source told People Magazine: “Harry has been cautious about showcasing his children publicly, not out of a wish to obscure them but to shield their privacy and ensure their safety from potential risks.
“He wants them to enjoy as normal a life as possible, free from fears of kidnapping or harm,” the friend added. “As a father and husband, Harry is resolute in his commitment to preventing history from repeating itself.”
Prince Archie & Princess Lilibet branded the “cool cousins abroad”
While Harry and Meghan can and will decide what their children’s lives are like until they are 18, there is little they can do after that. That said, a source told the Express that the Sussexes have a plan set in place for their children.
According to an “extremely well-placed” Express source, the Sussexes will give their children free rein as soon as they turn 18. At that point, Archie and Lilibet will effectively be open to choose whatever future path suits them.
“There’s a conscious effort to keep the children out of the public eye as much as possible until they reach the age of 18, so they can form their own opinions and personalities,” the source said.
“Once they reach the age of maturity, it’s going to be very much about what they want to do, and what they choose to support,” they added. “I suppose it will be like the cool cousins abroad who can live their lives the way they wish while the Wales children will be more about duty and formality.”
A Us Weekly source offered some insight into Archie and Lilibet’s lives, saying they are “well-mannered.” Moreover, the source said Archie is “sweet and curious and playful,” while Lilibet is “vibrant and happy.”
As touched upon earlier in this article, it’s no secret that Harry and Meghan have made the call not to take their children on trips to the UK. Unfortunately, this means they’re unable to see any of their family in the British monarchy.
For Archie and Lilibet, not visiting the UK means they haven’t built relationships with their grandfather, King Charles. Perhaps more concerning, they’ve also thus far missed out on forming bonds with their royal cousins, Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis.
Several royal experts have criticized Harry and Meghan for not allowing their children the opportunity to forge bonds with their UK-based family.
“They will start to ask questions”
Just some months ago, Meghan Markle’s estranged father, Thomas Markle, also lashed out at his daughter and son-in-law, saying they are ‘denying’ their children the right to know their royal relatives.
“They are getting to the age where they will start to ask questions, as all kids do,” Markle told New Zealand Woman’s Weekly, as per The Sun.
“I find myself wondering how Archie and Lilbet will feel in a few years’ time when they realise all the things they have missed out on,” he added.
Archie and Lilibet will more than likely live in luxury as they grow up, and eventually they’ll become fully aware of the sad feud between their parents and the Royal Family. A source close to the Sussexes told Us Weekly that Harry and Meghan will have “those conversations in due time” regarding their kids’ royal heritage, but for now, traveling to the UK to visit their royal relatives is not an option.
Speaking with The Sun, royal expert and author Hugo Vickers claims that, in fact, it isn’t Harry who has decided that Archie and Lilibet won’t get to visit the UK, but Meghan.
Vickers argues that Meghan has kept her children away from the Royal Family so that she can ‘stay in control’ and raise them as Americans rather than expose them to anything royal.
“I mean, I’m sure [Meghan just] wants to be in control,” Vickers said. “I think the problem for the children, as I see it, is that yes they’re probably having a very nice time being brought up in California. I’m sure it’s a lovely place to be brought up.”
Prince Harry returns to UK without Archie and Lilibet
The royal expert added: “But there’s going to come a point when they realise that they are actually cousins to the British Royal Family, and that they could have taken part in all the sort of things that Prince William’s children take part in. And you know they don’t, even, as far as I can see, know, their cousins at all, and that surely must be quite tricky and disappointing really, for them.”
Vickers concluded that not only have Archie and Lilibet not met their grandfather, King Charles, but they’ve also never spent time with their mother’s father, Thomas Markle.
“It’s really up to Prince Harry to make the effort. If he wants his children to meet him [Charles], he should make the effort to bring them across,” Vickers claimed. “Simple as that. The King would, I’m sure, always make time for him if he did that, but there doesn’t seem to be a great willingness to do so.”
On Monday, Harry briefly returned to the UK for the WellChild Awards. There the Duke presented an award for an Inspirational Child aged 4 to 6 and delivered a speech during the event at the Royal Lancaster Hotel in London. As per GB News, Harry requested that the location be kept a secret until the day of the event because of security measures.
Days before, Harry attended a string of engagements in New York City, including making a speech at The Diana Award, an award that celebrates young people who work to improve the lives of others.
Royal expert says Prince Archie & Princes Lilibet ‘may never set foot in the UK’
Neither Mehan nor their children accompanied Harry in New York City, nor on the recent trip to the UK. According to royal expert Charles Rae, the fact that Harry embarked on “royal engagements” without his wife is “interesting.”
Sadly, the former royal correspondent stated that Meghan may never return to the UK again – and the same goes for Archie and Lilibet.
“In terms of Meghan, I’m of the school that does not believe that Meghan will ever return to this country,” Charles Rae told GB News. “And by implication, it means that the children, unless they’re much older, will not be back in this country for the for the foreseeable future.”
The royal expert claimed that the Duchess has had “plenty of opportunities” to accompany her husband back to the UK but has “decided she doesn’t want to.”
Her most recent visit was for the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II in 2022.
“She’s had plenty of ways that she could return with the Duke of Sussex, and she’s decided that she doesn’t want to. She’s made one stop over in this country at an airport when Harry was here, he picked her up at the airport, and they flew off for some sort of royal visit,” Rae added.
“But, no, I don’t believe that she ever wants to come back to this country, which is a great pity. But she’s made her bed, she wants to lie in it, and she’s going to carry on staying in California.”
Archie and Lilibet to inherit millions
Speaking of the luxurious life of the Sussexes and their children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet won’t have to struggle when they grow up. Besides the many business ventures their parents have been involved in, it’s been reported that they already have millions to their name.
Prince Harry received around $10 million from a family trust fund set up by the late Queen Mother for his 40th birthday. He was also handed millions after his mother tragically passed away – and it appears that Harry has a plan in store for his children.
According to a GB News source, Harry will ensure his son and daughter inherit millions of pounds. The money he got from his great-grandmother’s trust fund is not for him to use but for his children.
“He wants to put the inheritance away for their future, especially for Archie and Lili,” the source told GB News.
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READ MORE
- Opinion: Prince Harry should leave the US – but not take his children with him
- King Charles tells friends he’s “not content” with Archie and Lilibet video calls – wants to be “present” in their lives
