As Prince Harry and Meghan Markle prepare to visit Nigeria next month for a special visit to the country, there is a poignant reason they could be considering bringing their kids Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet along with them.
It’s not often that royal fans get to see Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s two children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet.
There are understandable parenting anxieties that have kept the youngsters from visiting the UK and Harry in particular is reportedly keen to keep them out of the public eye – meaning we likely won’t see the kids in Meghan’s new family-friendly Netflix show.
But there is a possibility that Archie and Lilibet, who sit sixth and seventh in the royal line of succession, could join their parents on their Nigeria trip next month.
The couple are set to visit Nigeria in May following news that the country expressed interest in hosting Harry’s Invictus Games which offers wounded, injured and sick servicemen and women the opportunity to compete in the international sporting event.
During the visit, Harry and Meghan are set to take part in a number of cultural activities while they meet with service members and their families.
But Meghan and her children share a special connection to the country that could prompt the couple to bring their children along for the trip.
In an episode of her hit Spotify podcast Archetypes, Meghan previously revealed that she had done a DNA test and discovered that she is ‘43% Nigerian.’ While she didn’t know the exact details of which area of the country or which tribes her ancestors were a part of, she shared that she planned to ‘dig into’ the details and discover more about her heritage. We’re sure the trip next month will be poignant for her following the discovery and give her plenty of opportunity to connect with her’s, and subsequently her children’s, heritage.
Not only will the trip be special for Meghan with the family connection, but Harry too has a special lineage to carry on in Nigeria. His late mother Princess Diana, who passed away in 1997 when he was just 12-year-old, visited a leprosy hospital in Nigeria back in 1990 and left a lasting impact on those who witnessed the visit.
Photographer Arthur Edwards, who was part of the trip, told The Mirror of Diana’s visit, “When we went to Africa with Diana, we couldn’t stop her hugging them, feeding them, embracing them. She was embracing them… looking straight into their eyes and made them feel a million dollars.”
However, while the visit would be a poignant one for the kids, it is unlikely that they will travel Nigeria with their parents as Harry and Meghan have a packed schedule and taking such young children on a nearly 16-hour flight doesn’t sound like the easiest of tasks!