Why Prince Harry and Meghan Markle Almost Changed Their Surname to ‘Spencer’

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are two of the most talked-about people in the world. And from Meghan Markle's powerful words about motherhood to Prince Harry's recent revelation about his relationship with the Mountbatten-Windsors, the royal couple has been front and centre.

This has been no exception this week, with the Sussex family publicly celebrating the fourth birthday of Princess Lilibet, releasing never-before-seen photographs and videos from her birth and childhood.

It is their family name that made headlines this week, with sources reporting that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle almost changed their 'Sussex' surname in 2023 over their children's passport delays.

The royal couple reportedly had to wait almost six months for Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet's passports to be issued, with fears that UK officials were "dragging their feet" over the HRH titles listed - a known point of controversy behind the scenes.

And at a point of "sheer exasperation" over the unexplained wait, Prince Harry reportedly considered changing their family name to 'Spencer', the maiden name of his mother, the late Princess Diana.

"There was clear reluctance to issue passports for the kids," a source close to the Sussex family recently told the Guardian, noting the continuous "technical issues" and "system failures" that prevented them from receiving the documents for six months.

"The king hadn’t wanted Archie and Lili to carry the titles - most of all the HRH. And the British passports, once created, would be the first and perhaps the only legal proof of their names," the source alleged.

"Out of sheer exasperation [Prince Harry] went to his uncle to effectively say: ‘My family are supposed to have the same name and they’re stopping that from happening because the kids are legally HRH, so if push comes to shove, if this blows up and they won’t let the kids be called Sussex, then can we use Spencer as a surname?’"

The source reported that Prince Harry's uncle, Earl Spencer, was enthusiastic and supportive of the potential name change. However, with the UK passports issued soon after, the action was not necessary.

Buckingham Palace has denied to The Telegraph that the King had any involvement in the passport delays. And neither the Duke nor Duchess of Sussex have commented on the reports.

We will continue to update this story.