Prince Harry asked Princess Diana’s brother if he could change his family name to Spencer
PRINCE Harry reportedly considered changing his name to Spencer and ditching his family name Mountbatten-Windsor.
The 40-year-old is believed to have asked Princess Diana‘s brother – Earl Spencer – for advice during a visit to the UK.
But it is understood that the Duke of Sussex was told the legal side of doing this would be too difficult.
A friend of Harry’s told the Mail: “They had a very amicable conversation and Spencer advised him against taking such a step.”
Harry’s children go by Mountbatten-Windsor – which combines the Royal Family’s name of Windsor and the Duke of Edinburgh’s surname.
If the prince had gone ahead with the name swap, his daughter would have become Lilibet Diana Spencer.
It follows claims by royal author Tom Bower that: “Meghan decided her real object in life was to be Diana.”
Mountbatten-Windsor is the surname of descendants of the late Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip.
Philip adopted the Mountbatten name when he became a British subject and gave up his Greek and Danish royal title in 1947.
He and the late Queen and Philip decided ten years later that they wanted their direct descendants to be known as Mountbatten-Windsor.
While you don’t need to go through a legal process to use a new name, it is recommended to use a deed poll to change documents such as passports and driving licences.
This is not the first time Harry and Meghan have been touchy on their names or titles.
The became the Sussexes when the late Queen gave them the titles when they married in 2018.
Harry previously had the title Prince Henry of Wales. But on his wedding day, he became The Duke of Sussex, a title which had been vacant since 1843.
When they married, Meghan adopted the female equivalent of Harry’s name, so became Duchess of Sussex.
And Meghan was seen to firmly correct Mindy Kaling after her friend called her Markle on her Netflix show.
In an episode on With Love, Meghan, the Duchess said: “It’s so funny you keep saying ‘Meghan Markle’ – you know I’m Sussex now.
“You have kids and you go, ‘No, I share my name with my children’.
“I didn’t know how meaningful it would be to me but it just means so much to go ‘This is OUR family name. Our little family name.’ “
Questions were raised when Harry and Meghan called their daughter a princess for the first time in 2023, when her christening was announced.
The children were then officially named as prince and princess on the Royal Family’s official website.
Archie and Lilibet are sixth and seventh in line to the throne.
Before their titles were listed as prince and princess on the royal website, they were down as Master Archie Mountbatten-Windsor and Miss Lilibet Mountbatten-Windsor.
They gained the titles when King Charles become the King, as they are grandchildren of the monarch.
Meghan also recently raised eyebrows after it was revealed she is still using her HRH title – despite promising the late Queen she wouldn’t after leaving royal duties.
Although she used it around her friends instead of for “commercial purposes”, a royal expert criticised her for using the title for her advantage.
In a podcast interview with pal Jamie Kern Lima, a photo showed a gift basket of ice cream and strawberry sauce Meghan sent her a year ago.
With it came a note on monogrammed paper, signed: “With the compliments of HRH the Duchess of Sussex.”
However, during the chat, Meghan opened up on a number of personal topics, including describing royal life as being “in the trenches.”