Why Meghan and Harry are following in Princess Anne's footsteps

Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan seem to be following in Princess Anne’s footsteps when it comes to raising their young son Archie, breaking with royal tradition.

• Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan seem to have followed in Princess Anne’s footsteps when it comes to raising their son Archie.
• Princess Anne and the Sussexes both decided against employing a prestigious Norland College-trained nanny.
• In other Royal News, Princess Eugenie’s baby will change the line of succession - this is why it's important for these high-profile royals. 

Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan welcomed their first child, Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor, back in May 2019, to the delight of the Royal Family and royal fans alike. Whilst many speculated about the possible names or titles their son would hold, the couple went on to break with royal tradition, opting for Archie to have a surname that reflected both Prince Philip and the Queen. 

It’s unknown whether the Queen ever offered to award her great-grandson a title, but if she did, it seems to have been turned down. If this is indeed the case, this was not the first instance of this within the Royal Family. 

Princess Anne, the Duke of Sussex’s aunt, is understood to have turned down the offer of titles for her own children, Peter Phillips and Zara Tindall, when they were born. This was reportedly due to hopes for her children to live a more normal life. 

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What other royal tradition did Princess Anne break?

This wasn’t the only way that Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan’s child-rearing choices have followed in Princess Anne’s footsteps. Traditionally many royals, including the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, have employed a nanny trained at the prestigious Norland College. 

However, Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan decided against following this royal tradition and Princess Anne and her ex-husband Captain Mark Phillips did the same. 

In his book, Princess Anne, biographer Nicholas Courtney reportedly explained: “Like most of the ‘old guard’ nannies, the royal ones are used to moving around within the family and caring for the new generation.”

“The faithful ‘Alla’ (Clare Knight) who was nanny to the later Strathmore children and in particular Lady Elizabeth Bowes Lyon, the Queen Mother, was recalled from a sister when she in turn needed a nanny for her children," he continued.

“When Princess Anne needed a nanny for Peter, her former nanny, Mabel Anderson, was available.”

There were later reports, claiming that an argument took place between Princess Anne and her nanny, none of which have been confirmed. 

“Whatever the truth of the story, she was replaced by a non-royal nanny, taking the Phillips children yet one step further outside the royal sphere of influence” Mr. Courtney added.

“Princess Anne is particularly keen to spare her children the glare of public attention.”

Do Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan have a nanny?

Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan are similarly keen to preserve Archie’s privacy. In their biography, Finding Freedom, authors Omid Scobie and Carolyn Durand claimed that the Sussexes struggled with nannies for Archie after he was born and that “[a]fter a few weeks, they decided to take on nights themselves and went without a night nurse entirely.”

It’s been suggested that they eventually hired a nanny to work just weekdays, though it’s not known whether they have a nanny with them at their new home in California. 

Meanwhile, Princess Anne’s daughter Zara Tindall is currently pregnant with her third child. 

This new royal baby will be the tenth great-grandchild for the Queen.