Where Will Meghan Markle and Prince Harry's Second Child Fall in the Line of Succession?
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Meghan Markle and Prince Harry Announce They Are Expecting Baby No. 2
The news comes after the Duchess of Sussex revealed she had a miscarriage last July
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are expecting another baby!
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex's second child on the way (they are already parents to son Archie, who turns 2 in May) will be the tenth great-grandchild of Queen Elizabeth. Though Harry, 36, and Meghan, 39, stepped down from their roles as senior royals last year, their children will continue to be in the line of succession.
Their baby on the way will be eighth in line, just behind big brother Archie. That means Prince Andrew, the Queen's second eldest son, will move down a spot to ninth in line to the throne.
Currently, the Queen's eldest son, Prince Charles, is first in line, followed by his son, Prince William, then William's three children, George, Charlotte and Louis, followed by Harry and Archie. After Archie will be his younger sibling, followed by Andrew.
PEOPLE Senior Editor Michelle Tauber joins PEOPLE Every Day to break down Harry and Meghan's announcement that they're expecting baby No. 2! Listen here and subscribe!
The most recent shake-up to the line of succession came earlier this month when Princess Eugenie, Andrew's second daughter, gave birth to her son. As a result, the baby boy became 11th in line to the throne. (He's now been pushed down to 12th.)
Misan Harriman Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
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Harry and Meghan's second child is also unlikely to receive a royal title.
Archie did not receive a royal title when he was born in May 2019.
Traditionally, royals are granted titles on their wedding days by the monarch. Harry received a dukedom on his wedding day to Meghan in May 2018, officially making them the Duke and Duchess of Sussex.
Similarly, Prince William and Kate Middleton were named the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge upon their 2011 wedding.
Pool/Samir Hussein/WireImage
Harry and Meghan's pregnancy news — which they announced on Valentine's Day — comes after Meghan revealed she suffered a miscarriage last July. "Losing a child means carrying an almost unbearable grief, experienced by many but talked about by few," she wrote in a searingly honest and heartbreaking New York Times essay on Nov. 25.
In the wake of Meghan and Harry's decision to step down from their royal duties last year, a palace source told PEOPLE that by the time of Archie's birth, the couple "knew they were going to hit the nuclear button" on their royal exit.
When Archie was born, the couple's focus shifted, even more, to "doing what's right for their family," added another friend.
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Henk Kruger/AP/Shutterstock Meghan Markle, Prince Harry and Archie
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Meghan, who won her privacy and copyright infringement case against Associated Newspapers last Thursday, and Harry have hinted about expanding their family. In the summer of 2019, he revealed that he and Meghan wanted a "maximum" of two children.
The couple has been settling into life in their new home of Montecito after moving to California last March. They have been quietly focused behind the scenes on further developing their new foundation Archewell amid the rapidly changing social landscape.
