If you were hoping for Princess Meghan to join the British royal family, prepare to be bitterly disappointed.
You see, when one enters the royal family, one must banish one’s nickname. And one thing most people don’t know about Meghan Markle, is that Meghan is not her name.
In 1981, three years before Prince Harry was born, Rachel Meghan Markle entered the world. So in the event of the royal wedding we’re all hoping for, Meghan Markle may transform into Her Royal Highness, Rachel, Duchess of Sussex.
LISTEN: Mia Freedman, Monique Bowley and I discuss everything Meghan Markle on the latest episode of Mamamia Out Loud. Post continues below.
Her rank will be Princess, by marriage. As for the surname, Harry uses Wales – the geographical area over which his father holds title, though Mountbatten-Windsor, the name of the Royal House, is used when necessary.
Rachel Mountbatten-Windsor? Rachel Wales? Rolls off the tongue.
Kate Middleton was made to abandon ‘Kate’ and become ‘Catherine’ when she entered the Royal family, and her official royal title is Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Cambridge.
If Harry is made a Duke when he is married, which royal historian Marlene Koeing believes will happen, Markle will be known as Her Royal Highness Duchess of Sussex.
But Meghan Markle isn’t the only royal who has adopted a different first name.
Prince Harry was born Prince Henry of Wales, but has always gone by the former.
Excuse us, while we recover from the realisation that everything we thought we knew is a lie.
For everything Prince Harry, Meghan Markle and the Royal Wedding, visit our Royal Wedding hub.
You can listen to the full episode of Mamamia Out Loud, here.
Top Comments
I'll be incredibly surprised if Meghan Markle ends up marrying Prince Harry, especially while the Queen and Prince Philip are alive. Despite pretensions towards modernisation, this is still an antiquated family that isn't likely to take kindly to an actress used to chasing publicity and doing her own thing and she isn't likely to take to the restrictions likely to be placed on her.
Say goodbye to the freedom to respond to issues on instagram, capitalising on your fame by taking offers for designer gowns and jewels, and to flitting off on holiday whenever you want. Life as a royal means towing the family line, keeping your mouth shut, keeping one step behind your husband, doing endless charity visits, and skirting the fine line of dressing well while not being judged as being a spendaholic.
I think the ship sailed when Princess Margaret married Anthony Snowden. More recently, Prince William marrying the daughter of a woman born in a council flat is a sign the Royal Family is becoming more egalitarian, even if it never intended doing so. Prince Harry going public about his battle with depression is a way of softening up the public prior to an engagement announcement.
It's certainly better than it used to be, but there's a difference between a commoner who's shown that she's more than happy to tow the line by having no career before marrying and following the Princess 101 guidebook, and an actress used to actively seeking attention for the benefit of her career.