Today is Princess Lilibet’s fourth birthday, whose name is a tribute to the late Queen Elizabeth II.
While many of her descendants have proudly been given Elizabeth as a middle name, Prince Harry and Meghan went one step further with their daughter.
Lilibet was a term of endearment for Elizabeth that was only used by the royals and close friends. The name was coined by her grandfather, King George V, because Elizabeth could not pronounce her name as a toddler.
While the Sussexes chose the name as a touching tribute, it is understood Elizabeth was left upset by the decision.
She allegedly told an aide: ‘I don’t own the palaces, I don’t own the paintings, the only thing I own is my name. And now they’ve taken that.’
In his biography of King Charles, royal insider and Daily Mail columnist Robert Hardman wrote that one of the late Queen’s staff told him she was ‘as angry as I’d ever seen her’ after the duke and duchess publicly stated they would not have used her private family nickname if she had not been ‘supportive’.
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The late Queen Elizabeth II was left upset by Prince Harry and Meghan’s choice of name for their daughter
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Harry and Meghan’s daughter Princess Lilibet. Her name is based on the Royal Family’s pet name for Queen Elizabeth II
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Elizabeth allegedly told an aide: ‘I don’t own the palaces, I don’t own the paintings, the only thing I own is my name. And now they’ve taken that’
The BBC’s royal correspondent, Jonny Dymond, reported being told by a ‘Palace source’ that the Queen was ‘never asked’ by Harry and Meghan about the use of her childhood nickname.
He said the insider ‘disputed’ reports in the wake of the announcement of the name that the couple had spoken to the Queen.
The Sussexes’ spokesman did not hesitate to denounce the report and insisted the Queen was the first family member Harry called about his daughter’s birth.
He said that during their conversation ‘he shared their hope of naming their daughter Lilibet in her honour. Had she not been supportive, they would not have used the name’.
They then used their favoured legal firm, Schillings, to issue a letter to the BBC and other media outlets threatening action – suggesting the report that the Queen was not asked for permission was ‘false and defamatory and should not be repeated’.
Notably, the BBC did not back down.
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The late Queen Elizabeth with her sister Margaret. Lilibet was a term of endearment only used by the royals and close friends
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Elizabeth and Prince Philip in 1949. The Duke of Edinburgh is known to have affectionately referred to his wife as Lilibet
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A young Elizabeth with her grandfather King George V and her grandmother Queen Mary. The name was coined by George because Elizabeth could not pronounce her name as a toddler
Despite posting their good wishes on social media, Buckingham Palace flatly refused to be ‘co-opted’ into ‘propping up’ Harry and Meghan’s version of events, according to Hardman.
They firmly ‘rebuffed’ their requests to do so, which ultimately, it seems, led to the Sussexes’ threats of legal action dissipating.
There were further questions for the couple when it later emerged they had registered Lilibet Diana as a ‘domain name’ on the internet before their daughter was born and they had seemingly asked the Queen for permission.
Lilibet’s birth coincided with a revival in the name’s popularity. Before 2021, fewer than three girls had been given the name. Since then 29 babies were named Lilibet in 2022 and a further 39 in 2023.
Despite the intense public interest in Lilibet and her brother Archie, Harry and Meghan have been conscious to make sure their children have a relatively normal upbringing.
This means the couple do not post regular pictures of either child.
In a rare snippet of their lives, Meghan did share a touching clip last month of her and Lilibet in beekeeping suits.
The three-year-old can be seen turning towards her mother – giving royal fans a rare glimpse of her face.
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Harry and Meghan shared more intimate images of their daughter on their Netflix series. This included a sweet image of Lilibet being tenderly kissed on the head by her father
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Meghan also shared a touching clip last month of her and Lilibet in matching beekeeping suits
The pair wore matching outfits in a vast field, but Lilibet accessorised with adorable rainbow wellies.
They held hands and were filmed from the back walking towards the hive, before Meghan, 43, bent down and rubbed her daughter’s back.
The song Sugar Sugar by The Archies played over the video, which was posted to her Instagram story.
Meghan posted the clip just days after her seven-year wedding anniversary with Prince Harry.
She marked it by posting an image of a cork board covered in photographs of her, Prince Harry and their children.
However, royal fans noticed that Meghan left out a crucial detail about the milestone in her caption.
The duchess wrote: ‘Seven years of marriage. A lifetime of stories.
‘Thanks to all of you (whether by our side or from afar) who have loved and supported us throughout our love story – we appreciate you.
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Despite the intense public interest in Lilibet and her brother Archie, Harry and Meghan have been conscious to make sure their children have a relatively normal upbringing
‘Happy anniversary!’
In other social media posts, the duchess has been conscious to hide Lilibet’s face – often sharing pictures of the young princess from behind.
Harry and Meghan shared more intimate images of their daughter on their Netflix series. This included Meghan holding an infant Lilibet close to her chest in what appears to be a papoose.
Another sweet image showed Lilibet being tenderly kissed on the head by her father.
