“I can confirm that Princess Lillibet was christened on Friday, March 3 by the Archbishop of Los Angeles, the Rev John Taylor.”
And with that quote, from a spokesperson for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, controversy emerged.
Why? Actually, it’s for two reasons. When a rep initially told US Weekly the above quote today, the first point of contention that some people immediately had is that Lillibet is being referred to as “Princess.” Didn’t Harry and Meghan leave the Royal Family and the glittery titles to live a life of their own?
However, although Lillibet was not a Princess at birth, she has the right to the title since her grandfather ascended the throne to be King. Such rules regarding royal titles were implemented in 1917 by King George V.
It’s also believed that Harry and Meghan want their children to decide for themselves, when they are adults, if they want to use the Royal titles. Until then, such titles are only going to be used for them in formal events and not in everyday life.
The Royal website, which is usually painstakingly slow in regards to their updates, only lists Lillibet with the title of Miss, though they list Archie with the title of Master. Buckingham Palace stated that the title will be “updated in due course,” which suggests they are waiting for King Charles III’s official coronation on May 6.
But of course, not everyone is aware of these rules and how Harry and Meghan shrugging off their titles doesn’t take away the same from their daughter. Thus claims of hypocrisy have arisen, pointing out how the couple still wants to use the Royal titles for their children.
Unfortunately, Princess Lillibet’s title is not the only thing about the christening that’s causing controversy.
Despite invites going out to the members of the Royal Family, none of them were in attendance. This hasn’t sat well with those who believe it’s an intentional sleight against Harry and Meghan.
However, it’s worth pointing out that the christening was at Harry and Meghan’s home in Montecito, California, which is quite a distance away from Buckingham Palace. But yes, there exists traces of tension between Prince Harry and his brother — as well as his father — which is mostly due to his recent memoir where he doesn’t exactly paint a positive picture of his family. For that matter, he doesn’t exactly praise himself either.
One person that was in attendance was Lillibet’s godfather, Tyler Perry, though it’s unknown who the godmother is.
It’s also unknown if Prince Harry will attend King Charles’ coronation. Similar uncertainty clouds the topic of who will be performing at the coronation as it’s been revealed that many popular British pop artists have turned the Royal Family down.
One thing is for certain, though — if the Duke and Duchess of Sussex decide to not grace the event with their presence, it will only fan the already spiking flames of controversies.
