The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are commemorating their son, Prince Archie’s fifth birthday on Monday. However, despite having an extensive royal family, he will not receive any public birthday wishes from them.
As per tradition, it is anticipated that the young royal’s special day will be observed privately at his family residence in Montecito, California, in the company of his parents, sister Princess Lilibet, and grandmother, Doria Ragland.
While it has become customary for key members of the British royal family to convey their birthday greetings online, senior royals will refrain from publicly extending their well-wishes to Prince Archie.
There is a legitimate reason for this, as official social media accounts typically only acknowledge the birthdays of active members of the royal family.
Royal Correspondent Danielle Stacey explains: “In recent years and certainly since King Charles III’s reign began in September 2022, we have only seen public messages from the royal family’s social media accounts for working members of the royal family, such as the Prince and Princess of Wales and their children, the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh and the Princess Royal.
“The Duke and Duchess of Sussex stepped back as senior royals in 2020, and no longer carry out royal duties. Similarly, the palace doesn’t typically share messages on the likes of Princess Beatrice, Princess Eugenie and Zara Tindall’s birthdays nor their children’s special days.”
While there hasn’t been an official announcement regarding Archie’s birthday plans, if past celebrations are any indication, it will likely be a modest affair. Last year, it’s believed that the young Prince celebrated his fourth birthday at home.
His first birthday was documented in Netflix’s Harry & Meghan, where he was shown in his highchair adorned with confetti, sporting an adorable hat, alongside a delightful fruit-topped cake.
Despite being born in London, Archie has marked all of his birthdays in the United States. Initially, he spent the first six months of his life at Frogmore Cottage on the Windsor estate, before experiencing his first snow during Harry and Meghan’s six-week break on Vancouver Island.
At five months old, he accompanied his parents on their royal tour of South Africa, where he displayed an early affinity for books, giggling as Meghan read Duck! Rabbit! on his first birthday in 2020.
Meghan has mentioned that Archie “loves being a big brother,” and he was observed assisting Lilibet in blowing out her candles on her first birthday, celebrated in the UK during Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee festivities in June 2022.
Archie and Lilibet remain Harry and Meghan’s top priority. Following his attendance at the King’s coronation, which coincided with Archie’s fourth birthday, the duke promptly returned to the US.
