The birth of Prince Harry and Meghan’s son, Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor, was surrounded by much confusion at the time.
In his memoir Spare, recently re-released in paperback, Harry explains how they managed to keep Archie’s arrival private.
In May 2019, when Meghan was a week overdue, the couple made a secret visit to the Portland Hospital to ensure everything was fine and to prepare for Archie’s birth.
“We got into a nondescript people-carrier and slipped away from Frogmore without alerting the journalists at the gates,” Harry writes. Remarkably, within two hours of Archie’s birth, they had returned to Frogmore Cottage, avoiding any media attention.
There was considerable confusion surrounding the arrival of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s son, Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor, on May 6, 2019
Their doctor decided it was time to induce labour, and Meghan was given a canister of laughing gas to help ease the process.
Meanwhile, Harry, who had ordered Nando’s via his bodyguards, took a hit from the gas meant for his wife.
‘I took several slow, penetrating hits. Meg, bouncing on a giant purple ball, a proven way of giving nature a push, laughed and rolled her eyes.
‘I took several more hits and now I was bouncing too,’ Harry reveals.
‘When her contractions began to quicken and deepen, a nurse came and tried to give some laughing gas to Meg. There was none left. The nurse looked at the tank, looked at me, and I could see the thought slowly dawning: Gracious, the husband’s had it all.’
Fortunately, the nurse saw the humour in the situation and replaced the canister for Meghan.
The duchess settled into the bath, immersing herself in the calming sounds of Deva Premal’s Sanskrit mantras, which had been remixed into hymns.
Harry set the ambiance by arranging electric candles – the same ones he had used during his proposal to Meghan – around the room.
Among the items in her overnight bag was a framed photograph of Harry’s late mother, Princess Diana.
He noted in his memoir that this touching tribute was Meghan’s idea.
Since Meghan was a week past her due date, she and Harry secretly visited The Portland Hospital to ‘make sure nothing’s wrong’, though they were well-prepared for Archie’s arrival (pictured in 2019)
Within two hours of the birth, the couple had returned to Frogmore Cottage without arousing any suspicion (pictured in 2019)
In his memoir, Spare, Prince Harry reveals that he inhaled most of Meghan’s laughing gas – and the cannister had to be replaced (pictured in 2019)
Meghan gave birth to her first child, Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor, at The Portland Hospital on May 6, 2019
In keeping with tradition, Buckingham Palace announced the birth of Archie the following day
Within two hours of the birth, Harry and Meghan had returned to Frogmore Cottage without arousing any suspicion
A few hours later, Harry spoke to journalists at Windsor to reveal his son’s name
Harry’s bombshell memoir, Spare, was re-released in paperback this week
Despite Meghan’s efforts to breathe through the discomfort, the intensity became overwhelming and she ultimately had to receive two epidurals.
‘The anaesthetist hurried in. Off went the music, on went the lights,’ Harry writes.
There was a brief moment of concern when the umbilical cord was discovered to be wrapped around the baby, but soon after, their healthy son was born.
Harry reflects on this experience in his book, offering an intimate glimpse into their journey through childbirth.
‘A nurse whisked the baby into a towel and placed him on Meg’s chest, and we both screamed to see him and meet him,’ he recalls.
‘Our ayurvedic doctor told us that in the first minute of existence, a baby absorbs everything said to them. So murmur to the baby, tell him what you want for him, and express your love. Tell.
‘We told.’
Meghan and Harry returned to Frogmore Cottage within two hours after giving birth.
Only at this time was it announced that Meghan was in labor, causing a schism between the prince and his head of communications, Sara Latham.