Meghan Markle, the Duchess of Sussex, has given birth to her first child, a baby boy. The actress who is married to Britain’s Prince Harry, the Duke of Sussex, went into labor in the early hours of Monday morning, Buckingham Palace has announced. She is a week past her due date, which was previously announced as April 28.
The Duchess gave birth to her son in a hospital in London, despite initial reports she was planning a home birth at the couple’s residence of Frogmore Cottage in Windsor. Doctors reportedly advised against a home birth since the 37-year-old Duchess is considered high-risk due to her age.
The news comes amid reports that Meghan had already given birth to a healthy baby girl named Ivy last week. Reports suggested Meghan and Harry are secretive about the birth because the newborn is not in direct line to the throne as Prince William’s children are.
Harry and Meghan confirmed they were expecting back in October. The former Suits star has kept up with public appearances throughout her pregnancy, although she cut back on some scheduled appearances while in Australia for the Invictus Games, as she was suffering from jetlag and exhaustion.
Last month, the couple also shared that they would not immediately announce the birth of their baby, in order to avoid the media circus surrounding the arrival of Harry’s older brother Prince William and his wife Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge’s three children.
Unlike Kate, Meghan will not introduce the newborn to her British subjects when she leaves the hospital, as was tradition with past Royal births.
“Their Royal Highnesses have taken a personal decision to keep the plans around the arrival of their baby private,” a spokesperson commented. “The Duke and Duchess look forward to sharing the exciting news with everyone once they have had an opportunity to celebrate privately as a new family.”
Harry, 34, and Meghan began dating in June 2016 and wed in a star-studded ceremony at St George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle in May 2018.
There are reports that Oprah’s bestie, Gayle King visited England to interview the Royal couple ahead of the birth of their first child.
Photos by Getty Images, WENN.com
