Queen meets Lilibet for the first time in 'exciting' video call with Meghan and Harry

The Queen was one of the first Royal Family members to meet the Duke and Duchess of Sussex's second child, a royal insider has revealed. 

• The Queen met Lilibet for the first time via a video call, a royal source has revealed. 
• Meghan Markle and Prince Harry "couldn't wait" to share the news of the birth of their daughter with Her Majesty. 
• In other royal news, Lilibet Mountbatten-Windsor is not the first royal born in the U.S.
  

The Queen has officially met her 11th great-grandchild, a royal insider has confirmed. 

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry announced the birth of their daughter, Lilibet 'Lili' Diana Mountbatten Windsor, on Sunday and are currently settling the newborn into their $14 million Santa Barbara mansion. The couple's name choice is a tribute to the Queen and the late Princess Diana, both of whom have played an important role in Prince Harry's life. 

The Duke of Sussex has shared a "remarkable bond" with his grandmother since the death of Princess Diana in 1997, according to royal historian Robert Lacey. The British head of state assumed the role of a "sort of stepmother" to Prince Harry and Prince William following the loss of their beloved mom, establishing an "affection" that has endured to this day. 

It's no surprise then that Her Majesty held a VIP spot on the list of people to meet baby Lilibet. Meghan and Harry were "excited" to introduce the British monarch to her namesake, setting up a video meeting shortly after they arrived home from the Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital last weekend. 

According to a royal source, the couple "couldn't wait to share that their daughter had arrived" and wasted no time calling up Her Majesty to show her off. Despite rumors to the contrary, the Duchess of Sussex has always gotten on well with her grandmother-in-law. She first met her in 2016, after frantically being taught to curtsey by another royal family member. In 2017, Meghan's Suits career came to end when she accepted Prince Harry's marriage proposal and became a full-time working royal under Her Majesty. 

The family reunion comes just two months after Prince Harry shared sweet details of the Queen’s special relationship with Meghan and Archie, which has flourished over lockdown through Zoom calls and gift exchanges. The Duchess is likely delighted to have Her Majesty in her daughter's life, despite being so far away. The Queen's inspiring personality was brought up in a recently resurfaced Princess Margaret interview from the 1960s, with the late royal praising her sister's "aura" as "magic." 

And it looks like the Duke of Sussex won't have long to wait until he spends some in-person quality time with his grandmother. 

The Queen has reportedly invited Prince Harry to lunch at Windsor Castle, ahead of his summer trip to the UK this July. It's hoped that the peace-making monarch will be able to heal the highly publicized conflict Harry has with his older brother, Prince William, and father, Prince Charles. 

The Duke of Sussex admitted during his bombshell interview with Oprah last March that he has had a distant relationship with the two men ever since he withdrew as a senior royal in January 2020. This distance is said to have been exacerbated by his criticism of Prince Charles's parenting on the Armchair Expert podcast, in which he accused his father of perpetuating a cycle of "genetic pain and suffering."