This archive report was first published on 25 August 2020.
As Meghan Markle and Prince Harry's son Archie grows up, he may still be subject to a royal rule that requires him to ask the monarch for permission to marry, a constitutional expert has claimed.
According to Iain MacMarthanne, the 2013 Succession of the Crown Act rule that royals who are sixth-in-line to the throne and above must ask the presiding monarch for permission to marry is likely to apply to Archie one day.
Archie, who is currently seventh in line to the throne, will move up the line of succession when his grandfather Prince Charles becomes king, and will automatically become a prince.
However, even if Archie decides against using his HRH style, there is still a chance he will be subject to a royal law surrounding marriage, one royal expert has claimed.
Mr MacMarthanne explained: 'Prior to the Succession of the Crown Act 2013, all descendants of George II, under the terms of the Royal Marriages Act 1772, unless the issue of a princess who had married into a foreign royal family, had to obtain the sovereign's permission to marry in order to retain their rights in succession.'
He added: 'The 2013 Act sought to bring multiple pieces of outdated and discriminatory legislation relating to the monarchy up to date.'
Either Prince Charles or Prince William are likely to be on the throne when Archie becomes old enough to marry, and if Meghan and Harry's son does one day wish to tie the knot, it's expected he will have to seek royal consent, just as other senior royals.
Mr MacMarthanne added: 'Consequently, should the children of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge wish to marry, they will be required to seek the sovereign's permission.'
The only way Archie may be freed from this obligation is if either George, Charlotte or Louis marry and have children before him, which would bump him down the line of succession, or if Kate and William have a fourth child and Prince Charles is still alive.
