Engagement of Prince Harry of Wales and Meghan Markle: November 27, 2017

[Gawin]

Yes, that's true but Harry would still have some say in any custody arrangements if he were plain Mr. Harry Mountbatten-Windsor. Expecting the children to live full-time in the U.S. when their father lives in the UK might be seen as reasonable. So Meghan might lose anyway. There's always that risk when people from two different countries marry.

I still can't see Harry and Meghan divorcing as acrimoniously as Harry's parents for the simple fact that their marriage is starting off on a much stronger foundation. Let's face it, whether you blame Camilla or the simple fact that they were incompatible, Charles and Diana's marriage was doomed almost from the start. If Harry and Meghan were to divorce I think they would be more likely to reach a custody agreement they'd both be happy with.

But this is all hypothetical and who knows, maybe I'll be proven wrong.

 

[Kronprinz]

The custody of children is not a problem in the UK because the monarch has legal custody of their grandchildren, not their parents. That’s why there was no custody fight when the Wales marriage fell apart. The Queen had custody of William and Harry, not Charles or Diana.
Should William or Harry divorce, again no custody issue wold happen, because Charles would have legal custody of his grandchildren.
Wonder how Meghan reacted when she was told this?

Royal Musings: Custody of royal grandchildren

And that's exactly how it should be. No matter how we put it, children who happen to be in the direct line to the throne are not like any other children.

I wouldn't be comfortable with the second or third heir to the throne being used as a bargaining chip in a divorce fight (which happens so often).

Does Charles have legal custody of his grandchildren? I thought that belongs to the monarch, not the grandparent?

 

[Princess Larisa]

Does Charles have legal custody of his grandchildren? I thought that belongs to the monarch, not the grandparent?

Not now, I meant when he is king.

 

[hel]

A Britisher claimed to me that "trusty and well-beloved" is terminology only intended to be traditionally used for UK or Commonwealth citizens. I would like to find out if that's true. If true, it seems weird.

I thought the Queen was referencing Kate in that way because she and Prince Philip had actually known Kate for many years, as opposed to their shorter time knowing Meghan. And I thought the Queen used "My" instead of "Our," when referencing Harry, because Prince Philip has retired from public life, and this is an official public document.

Can anyone with actual knowledge, please clarify?

Wbenson did a fantastic job covering the "trusty and well beloved" (though I strongly suspect it would not be applied to citizens of Commonwealth republics, just the Queen's realms that are Commonwealth contries), however I don't think anyone's addressed the singular/plural question.

It does not have anything to do with Philip or his retirement; the official Instrument of Consent merely uses the Royal We, whereas the declaration to the privy council uses the singular pronoun. When the Queen, in a formal document, says "We", she is referring always to herself as Queen, not to herself and Philip.

FWIW, it's consistent through all of the declarations of consent that they start with "I declare My Consent":

• Harry and Meghan
• Juliet Nicolson and Simon Rood (the last marriage to have been granted consent under the old legislation)
• Edward Lascelles and Sophie Cartlidge
• Louise Nicolson and Charls Morshead
• Zara and Mike (as well as Mark Lascelles and Judith Kilburn)
• William and Kate

As an aside, Juliet, Edward, Louise, and Mark were all referred to merely as the Queen's "cousin", with no superlatives, so it wasn't just Marina Mowatt.

 

[SophiaDorothea]

I noticed a difference in the privy council meeting notes. For Will and Kate's, she just had the declaration of consent, but for Harry and Meghan's it looks like she's also saying "this is what I want the Instrument of Consent to say".