The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, announced on Valentine’s Day that they are expecting their second child.
The couple announced the news by sharing a beautiful black and white photo of them both under a tree with Meghan resting her head on Harry’s lap, cradling her small bump.
A spokesperson for Meghan and Harry said: “We can confirm that Archie is going to be a big brother. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are overjoyed to be expecting their second child.”
On Twitter, photographer and friend of the Sussexes, Misan Harriman, revealed that the photo was taken during a remote shoot on an iPad.
Meg, I was there at your wedding to witness this love story begin, and my friend, I am honoured to capture it grow. Congratulations to The Duke and Duchess of Sussex on this joyous news!#remoteshoot #shotonipad #shotbymisan pic.twitter.com/3iSYjydVj9
— Misan Harriman (@misanharriman) February 14, 2021
A statement from Buckingham Palace in response to the news stated, “Her Majesty, the Duke of Edinburgh, the Prince of Wales and the entire family are delighted and wish them well.”
The news confirms the Queen’s tenth great-grandchild and the baby will be Prince Charles’ fifth grandchild – alongside George, Charlotte, Louis and Archie. With their brother Archie at seventh, the baby will be eighth in line to the British throne.
Something that made the announcement even more poignant is the fact that 14th February 2021 is 37 years to the day since Prince Charles and Princess Diana announced they were expecting their own second child, Harry.
This positive news comes not too long after Meghan shared that she devastatingly experienced a miscarriage in July 2020. In an opinion piece for the New York Times, Meghan gave us an insight into her experience.
The Duchess reflected on how the grief was “unbearable”. She added that, despite being such a common experience (10-15% of pregnancies are likely to end in miscarriage), the topic is still such a “taboo, riddled with (unwarranted) shame, and perpetuating a cycle of solitary mourning.” This taboo, she notes, made the experience even more painful.
Writing for the Times, Meghan’s honesty surrounding her experience has created a safe space for women to talk about their own experiences with what can be a devastating time in someone’s life. Coupled with Chrissy Teigen’s recent transparency, it is refreshing to see the unspoken rollercoaster of maternity and fertility being approached openly in the press.
The couple is yet to announce a due date, but with their recent decisions to keep Archie largely out of the media, it is perhaps unlikely that they will.
Nia Thomas
Featured image courtesy of John Looy via Unsplash. Image licence found here. No changes were made to the image.