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| Royal baby: Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, gives birth to boy | Royal baby: Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, gives birth to boy |
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| The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are the parents of a baby boy, weighing 7lbs 3oz, with Prince Harry saying his new son was “absolutely to die for”. | The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are the parents of a baby boy, weighing 7lbs 3oz, with Prince Harry saying his new son was “absolutely to die for”. |
| Meghan was safely delivered of the seventh in line to the throne at 5.26am on Monday, Buckingham Palace announced. | |
| The new royal, an eighth great-grandchild for the Queen, 93, and Duke of Edinburgh, 97, was “a little bit overdue,” according to the new father, who revealed they were “still thinking about names” , and who also confessed he had only had “about two hours’ sleep”. | |
| Looking for comment on the royal baby? Don’t ask me | Afua Hirsch | |
| The couple, who had decided not to learn the gender of their baby beforehand, announced the birth on their Instagram account, @SussexRoyal, with the words: “It’s a BOY!” , adding they were “overjoyed”. | The couple, who had decided not to learn the gender of their baby beforehand, announced the birth on their Instagram account, @SussexRoyal, with the words: “It’s a BOY!” , adding they were “overjoyed”. |
| By the time Buckingham Palace announced just before 2pm that the Duchess of Sussex was in labour, she had, in reality, already given birth hours before. | |
| Harry later then confirmed the news at a hastily arranged press conference with a small pool of media. | |
| Speaking from Windsor, where they recently moved into their new home, Frogmore Cottage, Harry said: “I’m very excited to announce that Meghan and myself had a baby son this morning, a very healthy baby boy. | Speaking from Windsor, where they recently moved into their new home, Frogmore Cottage, Harry said: “I’m very excited to announce that Meghan and myself had a baby son this morning, a very healthy baby boy. |
| “Mother and baby are doing incredibly well. It’s been the most amazing experience I could ever have possibly imagined. How any woman does what they do is beyond comprehension, but we’re both absolutely thrilled and so grateful to all the love and support from everybody out there. It’s been amazing, so we just wanted to share this with everybody.” | “Mother and baby are doing incredibly well. It’s been the most amazing experience I could ever have possibly imagined. How any woman does what they do is beyond comprehension, but we’re both absolutely thrilled and so grateful to all the love and support from everybody out there. It’s been amazing, so we just wanted to share this with everybody.” |
| On a name, he added: “That’s the next bit ... The baby is a little bit overdue, so we’ve had a little bit of time to think about it.” The couple planned to make another announcement in two days’ time “so everyone can see the baby”. | |
| Describing what it was like to be present at the birth, Harry said: “This is definitely my first birth. It was amazing, absolutely incredible, and, as I said, I’m so incredibly proud of my wife. | Describing what it was like to be present at the birth, Harry said: “This is definitely my first birth. It was amazing, absolutely incredible, and, as I said, I’m so incredibly proud of my wife. |
| “As every father and parent will ever say, you know, your baby is absolutely amazing, but this little thing is absolutely to die for, so I’m just over the moon.” | |
| Meghan’s mother, Doria Ragland, who flew in from her Los Angeles home ahead of the birth of her first grandchild, is at Frogmore Cottage supporting her daughter. She was said to be “overjoyed by the arrival of her first grandchild”. The baby is a fourth grandchild for the Prince of Wales. | |
| It was not immediately clear where Meghan had given birth, but the wording of the announcement fuelled speculation she had opted for a home birth at the couple’s newly renovated residence in Windsor. The place of birth is likely to be revealed on the official birth certificate. | It was not immediately clear where Meghan had given birth, but the wording of the announcement fuelled speculation she had opted for a home birth at the couple’s newly renovated residence in Windsor. The place of birth is likely to be revealed on the official birth certificate. |
| The duchess is understood to have picked her own medical team to directly oversee the arrival of her first child rather than being led by the senior medical consultants who have attended royal women in the past. | The duchess is understood to have picked her own medical team to directly oversee the arrival of her first child rather than being led by the senior medical consultants who have attended royal women in the past. |
| The Queen, Prince Philip, Prince Charles, the Duchess of Cornwall, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, and the late Diana, Princess of Wales’s siblings, Lady Jane Fellowes, Lady Sarah McCorquodale and Earl Spencer, have all been informed and are delighted with the news, Buckingham Palace said in a statement. | |
| Theresa May, Jeremy Corbyn, the Labour leader, and Scotland’s first minister Nicola Sturgeon were among the first of many to tweet their congratulations. | |
| Referring to a long past tradition of home secretaries having to be present at royal births, Sajid Javid jokingly tweeted: “As home secretary, contrary to speculation, I didn’t attend the birth!” | |
| There were also congratulations from across the Atlantic, with Michelle Obama, the former First Lady of the United States, tweeting: “Congratulations, Meghan and Harry! Barack and I are so thrilled for both of you and can’t wait to meet him.” | |
| The baby’s title is expected to be Earl of Dumbarton – as the son of a duke, he is entitled to use one of Harry’s lesser titles as a courtesy title – while his surname is expected to be Mountbatten-Windsor, and he will will one day inherit the title of the Duke of Sussex from his father. | |
| The London Eye will turn red, white and blue in honour of the birth of the royal baby. | The London Eye will turn red, white and blue in honour of the birth of the royal baby. |
| Speculation the baby was overdue was fuelled on Friday when Harry, who has an official visit to the Hague scheduled for Thursday to launch the one-year countdown to the Invictus Games 2020, cancelled a visit to Amsterdam on Wednesday, which would have necessitated an overnight stay. | Speculation the baby was overdue was fuelled on Friday when Harry, who has an official visit to the Hague scheduled for Thursday to launch the one-year countdown to the Invictus Games 2020, cancelled a visit to Amsterdam on Wednesday, which would have necessitated an overnight stay. |
| The couple announced in April that they had “taken a personal decision” to keep the plans around the arrival of their baby private. The wait had been a challenge for royal commentators faced with a paucity of facts beyond only that a royal birth was imminent. | |
| The couple made clear there would be no hospital steps photocall with the newborn, as there was with William and Kate and their three children. It is understood the Sussexes thought there was no pressure for such a public show when the baby was not in the direct line of succession, and unlikely to ever be monarch. | The couple made clear there would be no hospital steps photocall with the newborn, as there was with William and Kate and their three children. It is understood the Sussexes thought there was no pressure for such a public show when the baby was not in the direct line of succession, and unlikely to ever be monarch. |
| The first photographs of the baby could be released through the couple’s Instagram account. It is understood there will be a photocall with a small representative group of media in the coming days. | |
| The new royal will not automatically be styled HRH or given the title prince or princess. That is the gift of the Queen, who will undoubtedly go along with the couple’s wishes. Princess Anne rejected royal titles for her two children, but both Prince Andrew’s daughters are princesses. | |
| The timing of the arrival of the latest royal ensures royal watchers can look forward to bumper birthday picture bonanzas at the end of April and the beginning of May. Photographs by Kate graced front pages on 23 April, when Prince Louis celebrated his first birthday, and on 2 May, when his sister Princess Charlotte celebrated her fourth. The Queen’s birthday is on 21 April. | |
| A framed notice of the birth has gone on display on a ceremonial easel on the forecourt of Buckingham Palace and will remain on display until 8pm on 7 May. | A framed notice of the birth has gone on display on a ceremonial easel on the forecourt of Buckingham Palace and will remain on display until 8pm on 7 May. |
| The arrival means that Meghan will still be tending to the newborn when the US president, Donald Trump, makes his state visit to the UK on 3 June. Before marrying in to the royal family she was a vocal critic of Trump, previously calling him “divisive” and a “misogynist”. | The arrival means that Meghan will still be tending to the newborn when the US president, Donald Trump, makes his state visit to the UK on 3 June. Before marrying in to the royal family she was a vocal critic of Trump, previously calling him “divisive” and a “misogynist”. |
| Souvenirs celebrating the birth have already been released by the Royal Collection. A “Royal Baby Bear 2019”, a limited edition cream bear retailing at £125, has been handmade by traditional Shropshire-based teddy bear makers Merrythought especially for the Royal Collection. | Souvenirs celebrating the birth have already been released by the Royal Collection. A “Royal Baby Bear 2019”, a limited edition cream bear retailing at £125, has been handmade by traditional Shropshire-based teddy bear makers Merrythought especially for the Royal Collection. |
| Meghan, Duchess of Sussex | Meghan, Duchess of Sussex |
| Prince Harry | Prince Harry |
| The Queen | The Queen |
| Monarchy | Monarchy |
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