Ever since Prince Harry and Meghan Markle officially left their posts as members of the royal family, the public has been incredibly interested in how they will choose to live their lives. While we now know more about their daily goings on, the same can’t be said for their two children — Prince Archie of Sussex and Princess Lilibet of Sussex.
However, one thing we do know is that Archie celebrated his 4th birthday on May 6, 2023. Despite choosing to keep their only son out of the public eye, the Sussexes have given the public glimpses of their firstborn on multiple occasions. From these moments, we’ve come to learn a few things about the young prince — notably, his adorable resemblance to both of his parents! In celebration of his 4th birthday, let’s take a look at Prince Archie of Sussex’s family resemblance.
Born on May 6, 2019, almost one year to the day of his parents’ first wedding anniversary, Archie has been keeping eager royal fans interested in him. In his short life so far, the young prince has moved around a lot. Born in the UK, less than a year after his birth, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex formally renounced their official titles and stepped down as working royals. The young family then moved around: first to Vancouver Island for a few months before settling down in Markle’s home state of California, moving first to Los Angeles, then Montecito, Santa Barbara for some more privacy.
In honor of Archie’s 4th birthday on May 6, 2023, one of Meghan and Harry’s friends took to Instagram to post a photo of the youngster. Read on to learn more and see the photo for yourself.
In Archie’s first months, it became clear to royal watchers that he and Harry had obvious similarities, most obviously, with hints of red in Archie’s hair. According to a People Magazine article from August 2019, a source had already predicted this, as they spoke of Archie’s “tufts of reddish hair” even back then.
In September 2019, during Meghan and Harry’s last royal tour, Archie made his debut royal engagement in South Africa when he and his parents met Archbishop Desmond Tutu and his daughter, Thandeka Tutu-Gxashe. With Archie smiling and being mischievous for the cameras, it’s safe to say the little guy stole the show!
At only four months old, it was already clear that the little tot bore a striking resemblance to his famous father. Dressed in blue-and-white striped overalls, a long-sleeved white shirt and socks, Archie sat in Meghan’s lap as his parents discussed the Archbishop and his wife’s organization, The Desmond & Leah Tutu Legacy Foundation.
A few months later, the Sussexes took to their Instagram account to post a video looking back at 2019 for the family, which featured a close shot of Archie being held by his dad in Canada. The two were pictured in front of a lake, bundled up in warm winter clothes as the doting dad smiled at baby Archie, who was sporting an adorable double pom-pom gray beanie. The facial similarities to his dad Harry were evident — notably Archie’s cheeks, face shape and hair.
But the family similarities aren’t only from Harry’s side — Meghan also has an influence, notably her eyes and nose.
In fact, mere days after Archie’s birth in 2019, his parents said that after being asked which one of them Archie takes after more, they were “still trying to figure that out,” according to Harper’s Bazaar.
In the same interview, Harry added that “his looks are changing every single day, so who knows.” Clearly, both parents have an influence, and it seems to vary which parent he resembles more as time goes on.
Over time, Archie’s resemblance to his mom has also been spotted by eagle-eyed royal fans. In the fifth episode of Harry’s Apple TV series co-produced with Oprah Winfrey, “The Me You Can’t See,” released in May 2021, never-before-seen footage of Archie swinging on a hanging bench alongside his father revealed a resemblance to Meghan.
Twitter user Julieth posted a side-by-side comparison of a baby photo of Meghan along with Archie, and it is quite clear that the toddler has taken after his beautiful mom! She captioned her post, “Archie been looking a lot like Meghan.”
Other users certainly agreed with this, with one user commenting that they “always” saw the resemblance. “I have always said that Archie looks like his mother from the first time we saw him at the photo call. He’s a mini Meghan with his curly and wavy hair,” they wrote. Other users also commented that Archie was Meghan’s twin.
Meanwhile, another person also saw that Archie’s face resembled both his parents, as they said:
“I think he is changing from Harry to Meghan’s faces at the moment. I can’t wait to see which face will finally stick.”
Coincidentally, Archie’s 4th birthday was the same day as his grandfather, King Charles III’s Coronation, at Westminster Abbey. While his father, Prince Harry, attended the Coronation after much controversy before, Archie, his sister Lilibet, and their mother, Meghan, stayed in California to celebrate his birthday.
According to The Daily Mail, Prince Harry left the Coronation immediately after the service and went directly to his VIP Windsor Suite.
“He was always determined to get back in time to spend part of Archie’s birthday at home,” a source told the outlet.
The insider also revealed that Harry took the earliest flight out of London before sunset, as he was “determined” to tuck his son into bed for his birthday.
Asked about who was in attendance at Archie’s birthday party, the source said that Oprah is likely to be in attendance.
“Some of their friends are celebrities, so yes, that’s likely. It will be a small, intimate gathering.”
Misan Harriman, one of Meghan and Harry’s friends greeted Archie on his birthday on Instagram with a screenshot taken from the Netflix series “Harry & Meghan” where the young royal touches a photo of the late Princess Diana.
Harriman’s choice of photo was seen as a “shade” by some in the comment section, noting that it was quite odd to post a photo reminiscing Princess Diana the same day as Camilla finally takes on the title of Queen.
“I see you @misanharriman … I see the subtle (?) shade…,” a user said.
Despite this, many people have showered Archie with greetings and described the moment with her late grandmother to be “heartwarming.”
“That moment was so touching. Diana Queen of hearts, happy birthday Archie!” another commented.
“Happiest of birthdays Archie. And May the gentle soul of the true Queen continue to rest in peace.” another greeted.
Happy 4th birthday to Prince Archie of Sussex! Who do you think the young royal looks more like — his mom or dad? What can you say about the birthday greeting? Do you think it was a shade toward the Royal Family? Let us know, then pass this on to any other royal fans in your life so they can weigh in too!
