Meghan Markle

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have a Son

via:thenewyorktimes

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex — better known as Prince Harry and Meghan Markle — on Monday welcomed their first child, a boy, the first interracial baby in the British monarchy’s recent history.

The newborn is seventh in line to the British throne, behind Prince Harry, whose marriage last year to Meghan brought historic change to the royal family. It is not clear whether the child will receive a royal title, like those bestowed on the three children of Prince William, Harry’s older brother, and William’s wife, Catherine.

Buckingham Palace said in a statement that Meghan gave birth at 5:26 a.m. — hours before the palace announced that she was in labor — and that her mother, Doria Ragland, was with the new parents. The newborn boy weighed 7 pounds, 3 ounces, the royal couple wrote on Instagram; a name had not been chosen yet.

The baby is sure to be the object of uncommon fascination, adored and criticized as a symbol of the modernization of Britain’s royal family.

“This little thing is absolutely to die for, so I’m just over the moon,” a beaming Prince Harry told reporters outside Frogmore Cottage, the couple’s residence near Windsor Castle. “Mother and baby are doing incredibly well. It’s been the most amazing experience I can ever possibly imagine. How any woman does what they do is beyond comprehension, and we’re both absolutely thrilled.”

Harry, 34, and Meghan, 37, have shaken up the royal family in a number of ways: The duchess is an American and a former actress, and their wedding last May featured a gospel choir, a freestyling African-American preacher and a gaggle of Hollywood celebrities.

They continued to set aside convention after the wedding, opening their own Instagram account and offering little access to the royal-obsessed British news media. In April, they announced they were canceling the traditional photo opportunity outside the Lindo Wing at St. Mary’s Hospital in the heart of London, curtailing the ritual hullabaloo that usually surrounds royal births.

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