Prince Harry has quietly had his HRH title dropped from the Royal Family website.
The move comes as a fulfilment of the 2020 Megxit agreement, yet signifies a formalisation in the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s distance from royal life three years on from the agreement.
The couple stepped down as working members of the Royal Family and moved to the US, where they have lived ever since in a bid to plot their own route through life.
While this may be what the couple say they want, the removal of the HRH title does come with some practical losses for them.
Aside from the obvious loss of the rather influential His/Her Royal Highness at the start of the name likely to open many doors not available to the rest of us, the title does also come with official privileges too.
The Sovereign Grant
One of the main features is the right to draw money from the Sovereign Grant, while it was only a right for royals down the line of succession up to the children of Prince Andrew, it was once something Prince Harry had access to – but not any more.
The grant is a kind of salary from the monarch for working royal members which, prior to Megxit, made up around 5% of the cash Harry received with the other 95% coming from the Duchy of Cornwall.
The couple said they were excited to part ways with the grant in favour of pursuing new directions.
State-funded security
Best known among the rights lost by Harry and Meghan is their access to state-funded security, an issue that has sparked multiple points of tension ever since the decision was made.
This decision has since seen the prince launch two legal cases against the Home Office, with lawyers saying he should be allowed to challenge the decision not to allow him to pay British police for his own protection.
At the King’s Coronation, Harry was allowed security to carry out direct coronation-related business but wasn’t afforded it for anything else, a situation that left reports claiming he was effectively a prisoner inside Frogmore Cottage.
The loss of the HRH title, which also happened to Prince Andrew, is in some ways similar to ceasing to take part in the life of a working royal.
While the likes of Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie both have the HRH title, because of their distance from the king in terms of succession, they are not working royals similarly to Harry remaining a prince despite not performing royal duties or earning money through the crown or Duchy.
Luxury benefits
Being an active member of the Royal Family affords multiple benefits like access to amazing houses and crowns and in some cases enjoying taxpayer-funded bill payments. But there are a number of bizarre aspects that come into play too.
On the Amazon documentary Serving the Royals, Paul Burrell, Princess Diana's former butler, said: “Prince Charles does have his valet squeeze one inch of toothpaste onto his toothbrush every morning."
According to ABC, there are also a number of bizarre traditions that the Royal Family is beholden to which, by nature, those not taking part in royal life will no longer be a part of.
The Christmas weigh-in
One of these includes members of the family being weighed before and after their Christmas dinner, with a significant weight gain once thought to have been a sign the royal had enjoyed themselves.
Monopoly
Living in Montecito, California, Prince Harry may also now finally be allowed to enjoy a game of Monopoly, a family pastime Prince Andrew once said had been banned by the Queen because "it gets too vicious".
Signatures
On another bizarre side, fans might finally be able to get a signature off Harry and Meghan, a move normally forbidden to working royals.
