Why Meghan Markle won't ever be called 'Princess Meghan'

Meghan Markle is set to marry Prince Harry on May 19 at St George’s Chapel in Windsor Castle — and while the title Princess Meghan Markle sounds quite appealing, it’s not what she will be known as.

In 1917, King George V issued a Letters Patent dictating that only children of the sovereign from the male line, the grandchildren of the sons of the sovereign and children of the Prince of Wales’ eldest son “shall have and enjoy in all occasions the style and title enjoyed by the children of Dukes of these Our Realms” — meaning they can use “Prince” and “Princess” with their first names.

As Markle was not born into the royal family, her title is solely linked to Harry’s.

“She will never ever be Her Royal Highness Princess Meghan. That will never happen,” Alastair Bruce, a historical adviser and royal commentator, told InStyle. “She will become Her Royal Highness Princess Harry of Wales, because we don’t give the brides titles in their own right.”

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Bruce hints that there is a chance Markle could be made a Duchess.

“If the queen wishes it, she may make her grandson {Harry} a duke on the morning of the wedding, and if that is done, then it will be announced probably about 8 or 10 a.m., and then of course, at the moment of marriage, she will become the Duchess of wherever that is,” Bruce told InStyle.

Some royal watchers believe that Meghan and Harry will become the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. According to The Telegraph, other available options include the dukedoms of Clarence, Connaught, Windsor, Albany and Cumberland and Teviotdale.

In a similar fashion, after Kate Middleton married into the royal family, she officially became “Princess William of Wales” and she and William were titled with the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.

But due to King George V’s Letters Patent, Kate and William faced the possibility that while their eldest son would be a prince, their daughters wouldn’t be called princesses. Thankfully, some royal rules are meant to be broken — or modified, in this case.

ALSO SEE: 7 things you didn’t know about Kate Middleton

In December 2012, while Kate was three months pregnant with her first child, the Queen issued a Letters Patent that declared “all the children of the eldest son of the Prince of Wales should have and enjoy the style, title and attribute of royal highness with the titular dignity of Prince or Princess prefixed to their Christian names or with such other titles of honour.”

Now Charlotte is known as “Her Royal Highness Princess Charlotte of Cambridge” instead of “Lady Charlotte Mounbatten-Windsor.”

This new rule hasn’t been passed on to Harry, so if he and Markle decide to have children, they will be titled “Lord” or “Lady” instead of “Prince” or “Princess.”

If you ever run into a senior member of the royal family and are confused as to what to call them, try ‘your royal highness.”

Or simply curtsy (just make sure you do it right).

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