Why Prince Harry and Meghan's son Archie does not have a royal title

Shortly after revealing their new baby son to the world, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex announced his name on their Instagram account - Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor.

And soon after the reveal of the Sussexes baby name, many fans noted that unlike this cousins, Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis, Archie does not have a royal title.

So, unlike what some suspected, Harry and Meghan's baby will not be referred to as Prince, Duke, or Earl - with royal correspondents explaining that he will only be referred to as 'Master Archie' when a title prefix is required.

MORE:Duke and Duchess of Sussex share baby boy with the world in adorable new pictures

It's thought that there are a range of reasons behind the lack of royal title for Archie, though.

According to royal author Penny Junor, it may well be because Prince Harry wants to give his child a more normal life than he had growing up.

She told ITV News, "It’s exactly what I would have expected from Harry. He would have dearly liked to have been a normal boy growing up and found his title very difficult.

"I think that his choice for his son is to let him have the kind of life that he didn’t have."

She continued, explaining that he saw his cousins, Zara and Peter Phillips, growing up having a normal childhood out of the spotlight, which may have inspired his decision for his baby.

In fact, Zara herself has spoken about her experience of being a royal without a title, saying “I’ve been very lucky.

"My parents didn’t give us titles, so we’ve been able to have a slightly more normal upbringing. As soon as you’ve got a title, it’s very difficult to shed it."

Another reason could well be because Archie is (likely) not the son of a future monarch. Back when King George V ruled, he prefered a 'slimmed down' monarchy, where only direct heirs to the throne would get royal titles such as Prince and Princess. It's highly likely Prince Harry will ever be king, with the line of succession set to move down to Prince George's family, if he has children.

Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis, all have royal titles, because they are the children of a future King.

Of course, those kind of decisions now rest with Queen Elizabeth II, but it seems she's been happy to allow baby Archie no title.

Yesterday, the Queen's first meeting with her new great-grandchild - her eighth, no less - was shared in an adorable picture on the @sussexroyal Instagram account, with Meghan's mother Doria and Prince Philip also seen smiling down at the new addition to the family.

It's likely that baby Archie will meet his granddad Prince Charles, and uncle and auntie the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge in the next few days, when they return from their royal engagements in Germany and North Wales respectively.