Prince Harry and Meghan Markle named their daughter, Lilibet, after the late Queen Elizabeth II, but a former royal aide claims the monarch wasn’t happy about the way the situation went down.
A former member of the queen’s staff claimed Elizabeth was “as angry as I’d ever seen her” after Harry, 39, and Meghan, 42, publicly claimed that they consulted with the monarch before naming their second child Lilibet. The aide went on to allege that the Sussexes were “rebuffed” when they asked the palace to help counter a subsequent report that they had never asked the queen’s permission to use the name.
The new allegation comes courtesy of Robert Hardman’s upcoming book, Charles III: New King. New Court. The Inside Story., which hits shelves later this month and is currently being excerpted in the Daily Mail.
Harry and Meghan, who also share son Archie, 4, welcomed daughter Lilibet in June 2021. When announcing her birth, the couple noted that she was named after her great-grandmother, “whose family nickname is Lilibet.” Her middle name, Diana, was in honor of Harry’s late mother, Princess Diana, who died in a car accident in 1997.
“They had a shortlist with a few other options, but [Lilibet] was always their favorite,” a source exclusively told Us Weekly at the time. “It was important for them that the queen signed off though, and that didn’t happen until right before the birth. They both agreed it would only be right if Her Majesty gave her approval, especially with something so personal.”
The BBC reported at the time that a palace source claimed Harry and Meghan never asked the queen for her blessing to name their daughter, now 2, Lilibet. A spokesperson for Harry and Meghan subsequently denied that source’s claim.
“The Duke spoke with his family in advance of the announcement, in fact his grandmother was the first family member he called,” the rep said in June 2021. “During that conversation, he shared their hope of naming their daughter Lilibet in her honor. Had she not been supportive, they would not have used the name.”
The queen died at age 96 in September 2022. Months before her death, she met Lilibet for the first time when Harry and Meghan returned to the U.K. to celebrate her Platinum Jubilee.
“Harry and Meghan visited the queen at Windsor Castle with Lilibet and Archie,” a source told Us in June 2022. “Spending time with her great-grandchildren and seeing Lilibet turn 1 added some light to her day. She thinks they’re adorable and gave Lili and Archie gifts.”
Us has reached out to reps for Harry, Meghan and the palace regarding Hardman’s book.
