Where Are Archie and Lilibet During the Queen's Funeral?

Upon the passing of Queen Elizabeth II, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle immediately extended their long-planned trip to Europe so that they could be with the family and attend services honoring Harry's late grandmother. While it was reported that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex had considered flying over their two children—Archie, 3, and Lilibet, known as "Lili," 1—the couple seemingly chose to not disrupt their children's schedules, and Harry and Meghan attended the Monday morning funeral alone while their children remained in Montecito, California.

While Catherine, Princess of Wales, and Prince William decided to bring their two eldest children to the funeral—Prince George, 9, and Princess Charlotte, 7—Harry's brother and his wife made a similar decision for their four-year-old son Louis, opting not to bring him to the funeral. Louis is closer in age to his cousins Archie and Lilibet, and all three were likely determined to be too young for such a somber event. The same was true for Prince Philip's memorial service last year: Charlotte and George attended, whereas their younger cousins did not.

Fortunately, Archie and Lilibet were both able to spend time with their late great-grandmother, for whom Lilibet is named, in June, when the family visited the U.K. for the Queen's Platinum Jubilee. In a statement on his grandmother's passing, Harry spoke with warmth of the visit, writing: "Granny, while this final parting brings us great sadness, I am forever grateful for all of our first meetings—from my earliest childhood memories with you, to meeting you for the first time as my Commander-in-Chief, to the first moment you met my darling wife and hugged your beloved great-grandchildren."

Harry and Meghan's decision not to include Archie and Lilibet in the memorial services is understandable, given the high-profile nature of the occasion, not to mention the fact that Harry and Meghan are fiercely private about Archie and Lilibet's privacy. Unlike Kate and William's three children, Archie and Lilibet do not have HRH titles, though they are considered "Prince" and "Princess" following the death of their great-grandmother. (They're still listed as Master and Miss, however, rather than Prince and Princess, on the official royal website's line of succession.) The lack of HRH title is considered a painful subject for Harry and Meghan, since with the HRH title comes security that Harry and Meghan have maintained that they need when visiting the U.K., and it remains unclear what titles Archie and Lilibet will have going forward.