Meghan and Harry's Son Archie's Biggest Milestones as He Turns Three

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's son Archie is turning 3 on May 6. From his first entry onto the royal scene to his future as a fan of "proud papa" Prince Harry's Invictus Games', Newsweek looks at the biggest milestones in Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor's life so far.

Meet the Press

Archie was born on May 6, 2019 at London's Portland hospital to worldwide celebrations as landmarks across Britain, including the London Eye and BT Tower, were illuminated to mark the occasion.

Instead of the traditional royal baby photographs taken on the steps of the hospital where Archie was born, Harry and Meghan introduced their firstborn child to the world in a special press call in Windsor Castle's St George's Hall.

Introduction to Great-Grandparents

Following their appointment to greet the press, Harry and Meghan, along with Meghan's mother Doria Ragland, went to introduce baby Archie to his great-grandparents, Queen Elizabeth II and the late-Prince Philip.

The moment was touchingly captured on camera with the queen gazing adoringly at her eighth great-grandchild and was posted to the Sussex's official Instagram account shortly afterward.

Father's Day

Archie's first months were spent quietly at the family's Windsor home, Frogmore Cottage.

To mark Harry's first father's day as a parent, the Sussex's Instagram account posted an adorable photograph of the infant clutching his father's finger. The post read: "Happy Father's Day! And wishing a very special first Father's Day to The Duke of Sussex!"

Christening

Archie was christened at the private chapel inside Windsor Castle on July 6, 2019.

Archie's christening went against some established royal traditions with no press imagery taken before or after the ceremony and Harry and Meghan's decision not to release the names of their son's godparents.

Official photographs were taken after the christening ceremony with Prince Charles, Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, Prince William and Kate Middleton and Doria Ragland gathered around the Sussex family. Touchingly, the group also included Lady Jane Fellows and Lady Sarah McCorquodale, the sisters of the late Princess Diana.

First Royal Tour

In the summer of 2019, Harry and Meghan left Britain to undertake a tour of South Africa, Malawi, Angola and Botswana and they decided to bring along their son Archie for the trip.

The prince made an appearance in front of the cameras on a visit to meet Archbishop Desmond Tutu at the Desmond & Leah Tutu Legacy Foundation in Cape Town.

As Harry and Meghan chatted with Archbishop Tutu, Archie was seen smiling at the clicking cameras and a series of touching images were captured of him being made to laugh by his parents.

Storytime with Mom

Following their South African tour, the Sussex family moved to Canada while Harry and Meghan's stepping down as full-time working members of the royal family was negotiated back in the U.K.

Following this, the family moved into a California home loaned to them by Hollywood star Tyler Perry. It was here that Archie celebrated his first birthday and to mark the milestone event the Sussexes released an adorable video of Meghan reading Archie a story book.

The video was published on Save the Children's social media feeds and was a significant move by the Sussexes to help draw attention to the charity's urgent coronavirus appeal which aimed to provide assistance to children affected by the pandemic.

Archie's "Chick Inn"

In 2020 the Sussexes moved from their temporary base to a permanent home of their own in Santa Barbara, California. In 2021 during their landmark interview with Oprah Winfrey, segments of the couple showing the host around their garden were included in the broadcast.

One of the stand-out features of the Sussex's California gardens was a chicken coop with a special hen house marked with a sign reading "Archie's Chick Inn - Established 2021."

It was revealed that Harry and Meghan had rescued their chickens from a factory farm and in a 2021 interview with Ellen DeGeneres, Meghan shared a previously unseen photograph of her son feeding the pets and collecting eggs.

First Words

Before too long Archie was learning to speak and his proud parents disclosed in a couple of interviews his early attempts at speech. Speaking to James Cordon, Harry informed the host that his son's first word was unexpectedly "crocodile" and that he was already beginning to put words together, even singing songs.

'He is hysterical, he's got the most amazing personality," the prince told Cordon. "He's already putting three, four words together, he's already singing songs."

In their 2021 interview with Winfrey, the couple again spoke of the enjoyment they get out of seeing their son learning to communicate.

"Oh, my gosh. He's on a roll. In the past couple weeks, it has been 'hydrate,' which is just hysterical," Meghan said, with Harry adding: "But, also, whenever everyone leaves the house, he's like, 'drive safe'."

Big Brother

On June 4, 2021, perhaps the biggest milestone in Archie's young life occurred when he became a big brother to Lilibet Diana Mountbatten-Windsor, named after the queen whose nickname is Lilibet and the late princess Diana.

Speaking about the big adjustment it can be for an only child to welcome a sibling Meghan told DeGeneres that Archie was doing very well.

"He loves being a big brother," she said.

"Someone told H and I that when you have one kid it's a hobby, and two children is parenting. Suddenly we realized... oh right, everyone talks about what it's like for the second child, but no one talks about the adjustment for the first child when the second one comes along," she said. "I think they have that moment of like 'oh this is fun... Oh, this is how it is now. He's so sweet."

First Day at School

As far as Harry and Meghan have gone to protect their children from the negative aspects of their lives as members of the royal family, this has not always been possible as Harry revealed on an episode of the Armchair Experts podcast in 2021.

During his discussion with host Dax Shepard, Harry disclosed that paparazzi photographers had taken intrusive photographs of Archie when being collected from his first day at school.

"Page Six of the New York Post, they took photos of my son being picked up from school on his first day," he said, adding: "These kids don't get a choice; they don't get a say in it."

Future Invictus Games Fan

During his visit to the 2022 Invictus Games in April, Archie and daughter Lilibet who were left back in California were never far from their father's mind.

In an interview promoting the games with People, Harry said that his son was already taking an interest in the events. "I showed Archie a video of wheelchair basketball and rugby from the Invictus Games in Sydney," he said, "and he absolutely loved it."

"I showed him how some were missing legs and explained that some had invisible injuries, too...Not because he asked, but because I wanted to tell him," he said. "Kids understand so much, and to see it through his eyes was amazing because it's so unfiltered and honest."

During the games, the prince also spoke of his desire to bring his family to Britain to take his children to see the queen. When asked if they would be present at the jubilee celebrations in June, Harry responded: "I don't know yet. There's lots of things with security issues and everything else. This is what I'm trying to do, trying to make it possible that I can get my kids to meet her."