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Meghan Markle would become Princess if stripped of Duchess title

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Updated on June 15, 2023

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Despite no longer being working royals, Meghan Markle, 39, and Prince Harry, 36, have kept their Duke and Duchess of Sussex peerage and HRH (His/Her Royal Highness) style.

Following their latest commercial activity and highly blunt approach to portraying royal life, vocal opponents of Meghan Markle and Prince Harry have called for the pair to forfeit their royal titles of Duke and Duchess of Sussex.

Meghan may be called ‘Princess Henry of Wales’ if she loses her Duchess title, according to an author and historian.

According to a constitutional expert, the Sussexes losing their HRH titles and Duke and Duchess titles is extremely doubtful since there are few historical precedents for it.

The most reasonable way for Harry to lose his Duke of Sussex title is for him to renounce it himself by petitioning the Queen, constitutional expert Iain MacMarthanne claimed.

According to reports, palace insiders are demanding the elimination of Harry’s and wife Markle’s royal titles of Duke and Duchess of Sussex after Harry accused his father of handing down a “cycle of pain” to his family during a podcast with Dax Shepard last week. This has re-invigorated pressure on the young couple from royalist social media users who are demanding the same.

However, just because their Sussex titles have been revoked does not mean they have no other options.

Historian Kate Williams, a history professor at the University of Reading, wants Twitter users to note that the public’s current demand for the will-be royals would technically upgrade their titles, negating the point of “dropping” them completely.

Cries to remove titles of Duke and Duchess of Sussex from Harry and Meghan. But Harry’s title of Prince cannot be removed. Thus if they were no longer Duke and Duchess, they’d be Prince and Princess. Which would, one might argue, be even more appealing on the world stage..

— Prof Kate Williams 💙 (@KateWilliamsme) May 16, 2021

She explained on Twitter, “Harry’s title of Prince cannot be removed.” “Thus if they were no longer Duke and Duchess, they’d be Prince and Princess. Which would, one might argue, be even more appealing on the world stage… ”

In a series of tweets, Williams goes on to say that “Meghan’s title would be Princess Henry of Wales,” which would be her title by marriage. “She does not use it now due to the Sussex titles. But if the Sussex titles removed, she would be quickly called in general speech Princess Meghan or indeed Princess Meghan of Wales…. ”

“[This] would look…bad considering all the others who kept theirs and would totally backfire,” she continued. “But still it keeps being called for, this time after Harry goes on a podcast and suggests mildly that Charles didn’t have a 100 percent happy childhood – which has been said, in detail, by sources around Charles for years.”

The title idea split royal supporters, with some seeming to be unhappy.

“She wouldn’t be a princess in her own right, just Princess Henry by marriage,” one person said.

“‘‘Meghan’s title would be Princess Henry of Wales’ Good lord no,’ another tweeted.

“Can you imagine Harry’s wife calling herself obsessively Princess Henry of Wales? I hope it will not happen” one person said.

The titles, on the other hand, pleased the couple’s followers.

“I am fine calling her Princess Meghan. We already know she is a Queen.”

Another added, “Princess Meghan of Wales has a nice ring to it,” while a third wrote: “Meghan Markle, Princess Henry of Wales. That sounds about right.”

According to the Express, Harry and Meghan are unlikely to lose their titles due to a lack of precedent for such a move.

“There is in some quarters a feeding frenzy at present for the removal of all or some of Prince Harry’s titles,” Mr MacMarthanne told Express UK.

“However, before entertaining such an idea there are a few first-stage considerations to be embraced.

“Within the context of present circumstances, Prince Harry was born an HRH and prince, and there is no modern precedent for someone born as such being stripped of these styles and titles.

“The Sussex peerage is a hereditary creation and was given as a gift by the Queen.”

“Similarly, as with royal styles and titles, there is no modern precedent for the forfeiture of a royal peerage,” he continued.