Harry and Meghan

This is the reason why Prince Harry and Meghan Markle kept their Sussex title despite cutting ties with the royal family

Meghan Markle, who is the star of a new Netflix series, has explained why she and Prince Harry remain the Duke and Duchess of Sussex.

Caitlin Ochs

William Allen

British journalist and translator who joined Diario AS in 2013. Focuses on soccer – chiefly the Premier League, LaLiga, the Champions League, the Liga MX and MLS. On occasion, also covers American sports, general news and entertainment. Fascinated by the language of sport – particularly the under-appreciated art of translating cliché-speak.

Update: Mar 15th, 2025 18:29 EDT

Megan Markle says she and Prince Harry chose to keep their Sussex title - despite distancing themselves from the British royal family five years ago - because it is “part of our love story”.

“It means a lot to me”

Speaking to People magazine earlier this month, Markle said: “It’s our shared name as a family, and I guess I hadn’t recognized how meaningful that would be to me until we had children. I love that that is something that Archie, Lili[bet], H[arry] and I all have together. It means a lot to me.”

Harry and Meghan were appointed as the Duke and Duchess of Sussex after they married in May 2018. In September 2022, when Harry’s father Charles became king, the couple’s two children were named Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet of Sussex.

Harry and Meghan seek “space” from royal life

Nearly three years before Charles' ascension to the throne, Harry and Meghan had announced that they were stepping back as senior British royals.

In a January 2020 statement posted on their official Instagram profile, the Sussexes spoke of a desire to “raise our son with an appreciation for the royal tradition into which he was born, while also providing our family with the space to focus on the next chapter”.

Pledging to divide their time between the United Kingdom and North America, Harry and Meghan then moved to California to bring up Archie, who had been born in May 2019. Their daughter, Lilibet, was born in the United States in June 2021.

Asked by the journalist Anderson Cooper about their decision not to give up their royal title, Harry told a 60 Minutes interview in January 2023: “What difference would it make?”

As noted by the BBC’s Jennifer Clarke, Harry and Meghan may still be the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, but they are no longer addressed as his or her royal highness.

Markle releases new lifestyle series on Netflix

Markle’s interview with People came ahead of the release of her new Netflix series, With Love, Meghan, which premiered on the streaming platform on March 4.

According to Netflix’s official synopsis of With Love, Meghan, the series “reimagines the genre of lifestyle programming, blending practical how-to’s and candid conversation with friends, new and old.

“Meghan shares personal tips and tricks, embracing playfulness over perfection and highlights how easy it can be to create beauty, even in the unexpected. She and her guests roll up their sleeves in the kitchen, the garden, and beyond, and invite you to do the same.”

Watch the trailer to With Love, Meghan:

What has the critical reception to With Love, Meghan been?

TV journalists have, for the most part, reacted negatively to With Love, Meghan. On the review-aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes, indeed, the eight-part series has accrued a critics rating of just 33%.

The Guardian’s Chitra Ramaswamy has branded the series “tone-deaf” and “toe-curling”, describing it as a show that “vibrates […] vacuous, over styled joylessness”.

Variety’s Daniel D’Addario notes, meanwhile: “‘With Love, Meghan’ is made with a great deal of love - in the sense that the greatest love of all is the one that a person has for herself.”