Kate Middleton and Prince William Wish Archie a Happy Birthday

london, england may 20 queen elizabeth ii is shwon around back to nature by prince william and catherine, duchess of cambridge at the rhs chelsea flower show 2019 press day at chelsea flower show on may 20, 2019 in london, england photo by geoff pugh wpa poolgetty images

(Image credit: WPA Pool)

published 6 May 2021

It's Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor's second birthday today!
Kate Middleton and Prince William, the Queen, and Prince Charles and Camilla Parker Bowles shared birthday wishes on social media.
It's likely Meghan Markle and Prince Harry will release a photo or video of their son to mark the occasion.

Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor, Meghan Markle and Prince Harry's son, turns 2 today! It's likely the Sussexes will release a photo or video of Archie later today, when the West Coast wakes up (remember last year's adorable Duck! Rabbit! birthday video?) Over in the U.K., meanwhile, Kate Middleton and Prince William, the Queen, and Prince Charles and Camilla Parker Bowles have shared their birthday wishes for Archie on social media.

Kate and William, under their new Instagram handle @dukeandduchessofcambridge, shared a family photo from Archie's christening in 2019, adding the caption, "Wishing Archie a very happy 2nd birthday today." In the photo, baby Archie sits on Meghan's knee, Harry sitting beside her, with Camilla and Kate sitting either side of the new parents. Charles, Meghan's mom Doria Ragland, Princess Diana's sisters Lady Jane Fellowes and Lady Sarah McCorquodale, and William stand behind them.

A post shared by Duke and Duchess of Cambridge (@dukeandduchessofcambridge)
A photo posted by on

The Queen wished her great-grandson a happy birthday through official Instagram account @theroyalfamily. "Wishing Archie Mountbatten-Windsor a very happy 2nd birthday today," a post on the account read, alongside a photo of Meghan, Harry, and Archie taken shortly after the latter's birth.

You may like

A post shared by The Royal Family (@theroyalfamily)
A photo posted by on

Charles and Camilla, meanwhile, shared a black and white photo of Charles, Harry, and Archie, also taken on the day of Archie's christening. "Happy birthday to Archie, who turns two today," the caption read.

A post shared by Clarence House (@clarencehouse)
A photo posted by on

The royal family's treatment of Archie and Meghan was a central topic in the Sussexes' bombshell interview with Oprah Winfrey earlier this year, with Meghan sharing horrifying experiences of racism. Meghan recalled her fears for Archie's safety after she was informed he would not be given a title, which would deny him the security provided to titled royals (like the Cambridge children.) "The first member of color in this family not being titled in the same way that other grandchildren would be," the Duchess of Sussex reflected.

Meghan went on to reveal members of the royal family expressed "concerns and conversations about how dark [Archie's] skin might be when he's born." She added, "That was relayed to me from Harry. Those were conversations that family had with him." The Sussexes didn't name the royals who made the racist comments, though Winfrey later confirmed that "neither his grandmother nor grandfather [i.e. the Queen and Prince Philip] were part of these conversations."

Emily Dixon is a British journalist who’s contributed to CNN, Teen Vogue, Time, Glamour, The Guardian, Wonderland, The Big Roundtable, Bust, and more, on everything from mental health to fashion to political activism to feminist zine collectives. She’s also a committed Beyoncé, Kacey Musgraves, and Tracee Ellis Ross fan, an enthusiastic but terrible ballet dancer, and a proud Geordie lass.