Meghan told Oprah why Archie wasn't given a royal title - and allegedly it was not her decision. Photo / Getty Images
Meghan told Oprah why Archie wasn't given a royal title - and allegedly it was not her decision. Photo / Getty Images
Prince Harry and Meghan's interview with Oprah has revealed why Archie wasn't given a royal title.
Winfrey was visibly shocked when the Duchess of Sussex spoke about the reasoning behind the decision.
And Meghan was not told why Archie could not have a prince title. She says it was not her decision. But perhaps the most shocking aspect of Meghan's revelation was that Archie's potential skin colour was part of the decision.
Meghan says when she was pregnant she was told by "the firm" that her unborn child wasn't going to receive a title or be offered security. The unborn child would not be a prince, she was told.
Prince Harry and Meghan spoke to Oprah about their son Archie. Photo / Getty Images
"After we got back from the Australia (and New Zealand) tour, I started to understand what our reality was going to look like," she says.
Meghan says her most important title will always be "Mom".
Prince Harry and Meghan spoke to Oprah about their son Archie. Photo / Getty Images
Meghan says she pressed officials as to why Archie would not be given a royal title and said there were several conversations with Harry about how dark their baby was going to be.
Meghan wouldn't say who had that conversation because it would be "very damaging for them".
"That was relayed to me, that was Harry's conversations with family." Meghan says it's safe to assume the concern was her mixed-race child could be "too dark".
"They wanted us to offer up our baby, but not provide safety and a title". Meghan says.
"In those months where I was pregnant and was told he wouldn't receive a title, or security and there was a conversation about how dark his skin was going to be and what that would mean or look like - it was really hard to understand."
Winfrey appeared speechless.
She says: "What? What? Who is having that conversation with you?"
Meghan added: "The Commonwealth is a huge part of the monarchy and I lived in Canada for seven years, but it wasn't until Harry and I were together that we started to travel through the Commonwealth … growing up as a woman of colour, a little of colour, I know how important representation is.
"The idea of our son not being safe, and the idea of the first member of colour in this family not being titled in the same way that other grandchildren would be – you know the other piece of that is this convention is that when you're the grandchild of the monarch (when Prince Charles becomes King), automatically Archie and our next baby would become prince or princess … It's not their right to take it away … They wanted to change that convention, for Archie. I mean, why?"
• The full interview will screen in New Zealand on Three on Tuesday night at 7.30pm.
