Princess Lilibet turns three: A look at the littlest royal's unusual life

In just three years of living, Lilibet Sussex has done quite a lot. She's taken the world by surprise, been caught up in a media storm and bestowed as princess.

But of course, all of that is adult nonsense.

The noise has nothing to do with little Lili herself, and everything to do with her historic place as seventh in line to the British throne.

It's likely why her parents, Prince Harry and Meghan, are at pains to keep her life private and rarely give any detail about her personality or life at home in Montecito.

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To say happy birthday to the royal Gemini, we're looking at three years of Princess Lilibet.

Princess Lilibet was born on June 4, 2021

Meghan, Duchess of Sussex announced she was pregnant with her second child, a daughter, while speaking with Oprah in the 2021 bombshell interview. It was a surprise announcement considering the Duchess had revealed in November 2020 that she had suffered a miscarriage.

Three months after the announcement, Lilibet was born.

In a statement shared to their Archewell website, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex wrote: "It is with great joy that Prince Harry and Meghan, The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, welcome their daughter, Lilibet "Lili" Diana Mountbatten-Windsor, to the world. Lili was born on Friday, June 4 at 11:40 a.m. in the trusted care of the doctors and staff at Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital in Santa Barbara, CA."

The statement clarified Lili weighed 7 lbs 11 oz (3.48 kilograms) and her and her mother Meghan were settled at home.

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Princess Lilibet has two iconic namesakes

Prince Harry and Meghan revealed Lilibet's unique name is a nod to two of British royalty's most iconic women: Queen Elizabeth II and Diana, Princess of Wales. 'Lilibet' is a childhood nickname given to Her Majesty by her father and was used by her immediate family as an affectionate term.

At the announcement of the sweet gesture, there was an immediate flurry of disapproval.

The BBC initially reported the Queen had not been consulted about the name, with one biographer reporting Her Majesty was "as angry as I'd ever seen her".

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In a statement to the media, Prince Harry and Meghan were firm that if Queen Elizabeth II had not given her blessing, they would not have used the name.

"The Duke spoke with his family in advance of the announcement. In fact, his grandmother was the first family member he called," a spokesperson said.

Princess Lilibet only just became a Princess

When Lili was born, Her Majesty the Queen was still monarch and protocol dictated the little one and her brother Archie would be considered "Miss" and "Master". She was dubbed Lilibet Mountbatten-Windsor.

Since King Charles' coronation, his granddaughter and grandson became eligible to receive the Princess and Prince titles as per the 1917 Letters Patent issued by King George V.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex confirmed at Lili's christening they would be using the Prince and Princess titles for their two kids.

The decision came as a surprise to the royal family as Prince Harry had called his title "a poisoned chalice" in his 2023 memoir Spare. However, a source claimed the Sussexes considered the title a "birthright" and wanted it to serve as a link to their heritage.

In non-formal settings, such as in school, Lili and her brother Archie will be referred to by their first and last name of Sussex.

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Princess Lilibet has a very famous godfather

Before her 2023 christening, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex asked their good friend Tyler Perry to be Lili's godfather. Perry is a prolific director, actor and playwright and offered his mansion to the couple as a refuge after their 2020 move to the States.

In their Netflix documentary, Harry & Meghan, the 54-year-old shared the story of how he was asked to take up the title by his friends, admitting he was "absolutely honoured".

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex choose to keep Lilibet out of the spotlight

Despite the three-year-old's place in the British Monarchy, Princess Lilibet's parents choose to keep her budding life private. They rarely share photos of her face or comment publicly on her development.

On a recent trip to Nigeria, the Duchess of Sussex made a rare admission about Lili. Drawing a comparison with her little one and the schoolchildren of Lightway Academy in Nigeria, Meghan said:

"Our daughter, Lili, she's much, much tinier than you guys. She's about to turn three. And a few weeks ago she looked at me and she would just see the reflection in my eyes. And she said 'Mama, I see me in you'.

"Oh, now she was talking really, literally. But I hung onto those words in a very different way. And I thought, yes, I do see me and you, and you see me and you, but as I look around this room, I see myself in all of you as well."

At the same engagement, the Duchess revealed "singing and dancing" was Lili's favourite class.

Princess Lilibet brings great joy to her parents

Early in 2024, Prince Harry boasted to Good Morning America about how he is "grateful to be a dad".

"The kids are growing up like all kids do, very, very fast. They've both got an incredible sense of humour and make us laugh and keep us grounded every single day, like most kids do," he said.

While Meghan has shared that she feels the same, she has also spoken on her podcast Archetypes about what it's like to be a mother to a young girl and the extra layer that comes with.

"I first just had Archie, now I'm a mum of a daughter," she said.

"And whether I thought it was going to happen or not, it did. I see the world differently through how she is going to see the world and how she is going to look at certain women as role models.

"I want her to understand that it is not just a box you have to fit into, but you get to be a full-fledged, interesting, curious, kind, strong, all the things, human being. But you also get to be a woman with a voice."