Prince Archie And Princess Lilibet Follow Same Royal Protocol at School As Their Royal Cousins
Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet are reportedly following the same informal royal school tradition as their royal cousins Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis as Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s children begin their new education chapter in Britain.
The Sussex children reportedly started school earlier this week, although Harry and Meghan have deliberately kept the name of their school private as they attempt to protect Archie and Lilibet from unnecessary attention.
Their milestone coincided with the Wales children beginning their own new school term. Charlotte and Louis continue their education at Lambrook, while George has started a major new chapter after enrolling at Eton.
Despite King Charles recently clarifying that Harry and Meghan operate as effectively “private citizens” outside the working monarchy, that institutional position has not removed or altered the royal titles held by their children.
Archie and Lilibet therefore remain Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet. However, according to a royal source, Harry and Meghan do not intend for those titles to dominate their children’s everyday experience inside the classroom.
“Harry and Meghan are absolutely not giving up their children’s titles,” an insider told Rob Shuter. “They are Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet, and that isn’t changing.”
The approach reportedly changes once the children arrive at school. The source explained that “school is school,” with Harry and Meghan wanting Archie and Lilibet to interact with teachers and classmates without their titles constantly preceding them.
“They don’t want teachers calling out ‘Prince Archie’ across the playground or classmates treating them differently,” the insider claimed, highlighting the Sussexes’ reported desire to give their children some normality despite their royal connections.
According to the source, the children are enrolled as Archie Sussex and Lilibet Sussex, allowing them to use their parents’ Sussex designation as a surname during ordinary school life.
That arrangement would broadly mirror the approach taken with William and Kate’s children. George, Charlotte and Louis can use Wales as a surname at school rather than being routinely addressed by their Prince or Princess titles in everyday classroom situations.
It also follows a longstanding pattern within the royal family. William and Harry similarly used their father’s territorial designation while growing up, providing a practical surname that allowed them to blend more naturally with their classmates.
Harry’s own experience reportedly influenced the decision for Archie and Lilibet. “Harry remembers how important that little bit of normality was,” the source said, suggesting the Duke wants his children to experience a similar separation between royal identity and classroom life.
“You know who you are and everyone knows who your family is, but you can still walk into a classroom without your title entering first,” the insider continued. “Harry wants that for his children.”
Archie and Lilibet’s royal titles therefore remain unchanged despite their parents’ non-working status. If the insider’s account is accurate, their school names reflect a practical family tradition rather than any surrender of royal identity, giving the Sussex children the same opportunity as their Wales cousins to enter the classroom simply as pupils.
