The royal family didn’t publicly wish Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s son, Archie, a happy 5th birthday, but it wasn’t the first time the Sussexes weren’t acknowledged.
“In recent years and certainly since King Charles III’s reign began in September 2022, we have only seen public messages from the royal family’s social media accounts for working members of the royal family, such as the Prince and Princess of Wales and their children, the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh and the Princess Royal,” royal correspondent told HELLO! following Archie’s birthday on Monday, May 6.
She continued: “The Duke and Duchess of Sussex stepped back as senior royals in 2020, and no longer carry out royal duties. Similarly, the palace doesn’t typically share messages on the likes of Princess Beatrice, Princess Eugenie and Zara Tindall’s birthdays nor their children’s special days.”
Like Archie, who was born in May 2019, Harry did not receive a public message from his family across the pond on his 39th birthday in September 2023. The Duke of Sussex spent his big day in Germany at the sixth annual Invictus Games. In honor of the occasion, participants and onlookers at the Poland vs. Germany volleyball match serenaded Harry with a rendition of “Happy Birthday.”
Harry and Meghan tied the knot in May 2018, welcoming their son the following year. Daughter Lilibet was born in June 2021 after the family moved to California in the wake of their royal exit. Before leaving their senior royal roles in 2020, Harry and Meghan’s birthdays were marked by public tributes from Prince William, Kate Middleton and more.
The tradition noticeably changed after the couple’s step down, with Lilibet’s 2nd birthday in June 2023 going without an official message. At the time, a source exclusively told Us Weekly that “the Palace did not snub Lilibet,” adding, “There is no and has never been protocol for wishing happy birthdays to non working members of the royal family.”
Two months later, the Duchess of Sussex was seen leaving the Italian restaurant Tre Lune in Montecito, California, with Harry as the pair celebrated her 42nd birthday. She subsequently enjoyed an outing with her friends while her husband was out of town.
“Belated bday celebrations w/ these lovely muses. missing sweet @sergenormant,” entrepreneur wrote via her Instagram Story in August 2023 alongside a selfie with Meghan, poet Cleo Wade and hair colorist Kadi Lee.
Other working royals have been honored on their birthdays through the years, either via social media or with traditional gestures. Following Queen Elizabeth II’s September 2022 death, bells at Westminster Abbey in London rang for King Charles III and his wife, Queen Camilla, as well as William and Kate.
