Prince Harry and Meghan Markle chose to name their daughter “Lilibet” only as a tribute to her great-grandfather, Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, and her grandmother, Diana, Princess of Wales, and not to the Queen, it’s been claimed.
Stewart Pearce, who was Princess Diana’s vocal coach and confidante, noted that Philip was one of the few senior members of the Royal Family, besides the Queen’s grandfather, George V, who used Lilibet as a nickname for the Queen.
Only a select few members of the Royal Family ever called the Queen “Lilibet” to her face, Pearce said.
The Queen’s grandfather George V gave her the pet name Lilibet in joking reference to Queen being unable to pronounce her name properly when she was a toddler.
Harry ‘adored’ Philip and wanted the Lilibet nickname to live on through his daughter
Pearce said that Harry was fond of Philip and wanted the Duke’s nickname for the Queen to survive through his daughter.
Harry and Meghan named their daughter Lilibet as a tribute to Philip who passed away in Windsor Castle on April 9. They named their daughter Lilibet in celebration of the bond between Harry and his grandfather, the royal expert claimed, according to the Daily Mail.
Naming their daughter Lilibet meant that the Duke of Edinburgh’s favorite nickname for the Queen would live on through the child.
“Harry adored his grandfather, who became a particular line of security for the young prince post-Diana’s death,” Pearce said, according to the Daily Mail.
Prince Philip died at 99 in Windsor Castle with the Queen at his bedside, after a month of hospitalization. He was admitted to King Edward II hospital in February and later underwent heart surgery at St. Bartholomew’s.
Meghan and Harry also named their daughter as a tribute to Diana
Pearce, the author of Diana: The Voice of Change, also claimed the Sussexes gave their child the middle name Diana as a nod to Princess Diana’s disapproval of the Royal Family’s “emotional aloofness.”
According to Pearce, Diana wished to reinvent the “emotional aloofness” and formality of behavior among the Royals that makes them unable to express love and affection.
Harry did not ask for the Queen’s permission to name his daughter Lilibet
The latest news follows allegations that Harry did not formally ask for the Queen’s permission to name their daughter Lilibet.
According to royal expert Russell Myers, although Harry had Meghan privately informed the Queen before announcing their baby’s name, they never formally asked for her permission to use the name.
However, sources said the Queen was “delighted” by the Sussexes’ choice of name for their daughter.