Arrangements are still being finalized as Prince Harry and Meghan Markle chart a new future in the royal family. Potentially, they will still retain their title as the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. But, what happens if they fully renounce their royal life? Apparently, they could use the surname Mountbatten-Windsor in honor of Prince Philip.
According to Daily Express, Prince Harry and Meghan will have to use a new name if they will completely give up their royal life. Thus, they may likely default to Mountbatten-Windsor, the surname of Queen Elizabeth's male descendants who don't have royal titles.
Prince Harry and Meghan, actually, use Mountbatten-Windsor for their son, Archie, in honor of Prince Philip. The name Mountbatten is from Prince Philip's side of the family while Windsor is Queen Elizabeth's.
Meghan, on the other hand, may choose not to take her husband's surname and use her maiden name, Markle, if they do decide to become private citizens. For now, however, Prince Harry and Meghan only want to step back as senior royals. This means that they will still be part of the royal family but with lesser prominence and duties.
In stepping back, Prince Harry and Meghan also plan to live for half the year in Canada. Thus, they will be attending to fewer royal engagements while in the North American region.
Meanwhile, Prince Philip hasn't been in the public eye in the last three years as he has officially retired from his royal duties. As such, the Duke of Edinburgh is no longer involved in most royal business.
In fact, he was not part of the negotiations that took place with Queen Elizabeth, Prince Charles and Prince William to discuss Prince Harry and Meghan's new roles. Prince Philip was actually seen leaving Sandringham just as the negotiations started.
However, according to Metro, Prince Philip was "deeply hurt" when Prince Harry and Meghan made their intentions known to change their roles in the royal family. Queen Elizabeth's husband was reportedly shocked by their announcement. He apparently wondered what The Duke and Duchess of Sussex were up to with this questionable decision.
A source said that Prince Philip is angrier because Prince Harry and Meghan made the Queen upset. This was before the family held their crisis talks in Sandringham last Monday.
Meanwhile, after that crisis talk, Queen Elizabeth gave her heirs at least 72 hours to finalize the future roles of Prince Harry and Meghan.
