Have you ever found yourself wondering what the British Royal Family's last name is? You're not alone and it's actually pretty confusing TBH. Between Queen Elizabeth and her husband, Prince Phillip, their four children, their eight grandchildren and six great-grandchildren, it seems like everybody has a different surname. With many sources close to Prince Harry and Meghan Markle speculating on when the newlywed couple plans on having kids of their own, it makes you curious what surname the Duke and Duchess of Sussex will give their children.
When Prince Harry and Meghan do have children, they will most likely adopt a surname that is completely new to the royal family. It will even be different from the surname Prince Harry used during his school days, as well as different from their cousins, Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis even though their fathers are brothers.
In order to understand all this surname hoopla, we must go back in time to the early days of Queen Elizabeth's reign. She made the decision to give her children the last name Mountbatten-Windsor, which is a combination of Prince Phillip's surname (Mountbatten) and the name of the reigning royal house of the United Kingdom and the other Commonwealth realms (Windsor). This surname is used by the Queen's direct descendants who do not have royal styles and titles. Prince William and Prince
Harry do have royal titles, though, so they are not technically Mountbatten-Winsdors.
So, if they're not Mountbatten-Windsors, what is their last name? Well, when they were in school they went by William Wales and Harry Wales. The surname Wales comes from their father Charles's own royal title, which is His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales. The brothers used their dad's territorial title instead of the last name Mountbatten-Windsor.
Prince William carried on this tradition when his 5-year-old son, Prince George, started school last September. Instead of being enrolled in school with his official title, he was enrolled as George Cambridge because his mother and father are The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. Yahoo reports that the royals adopt this practice for picking surnames to help the royal children "blend into their school environment, while also neatly tying in with their parents’ titles."
When Prince Harry and Meghan Markle welcome their own royal tots, they will most likely follow this pattern, as well. Since they are the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, their kids will be given the surname Sussex. The more you know!