Meghan Markle determined her kids will be close to King Charles

Royal Family

exclusive

By Sara Nathan

April 15, 2023 | 10:32am

The guest list for King Charles’ coronation may be exclusive — but so is the one for his grandson’s birthday on the same day.

Meghan Markle is planning an “intimate” birthday bash for Prince Archie’s 4th birthday on May 6.

Alongside her and Prince Harry’s flock of rescue chickens and three dogs, her mom Doria Ragland, Archie’s school chums, and some mommy friends, there may be a few recognizable faces at the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s Montecito, California, estate — after all, they “do have celebrities in their life,” one source familiar with the family told Page Six.

Nearly 6,000 miles away, Archie’s dad, Prince Harry, will attempt to race home hours after attending his father King Charles’ coronation at Westminster Abbey in London.

Page Six is told that Harry will be flying commercial, not private, and may even jump on a flight back to California following the 11 a.m. ceremony — meaning he could arrive home in the early evening, thanks to the eight-hour time difference.

“Harry’s going to make every effort to get back in time for Archie’s birthday,” said the source. “It’s going to be an intimate party, it’s not going to be like ‘My Super Sweet 16’ or Portia de Rossi’s 50th!”

Buckingham Palace and the Sussexes announced this week that Markle, 41, won’t be attending Charles’ coronation, leaving Harry to face his family alone for the first time since the debut of his bombshell memoir “Spare.”

As one highly placed royal insider told Page Six of Harry and his family: “Even though Meghan is not going, it’s still going to be extremely awkward.”

For one thing, Harry is still not talking to his older brother Prince William, multiple royal insiders confirmed.

However, claims that William’s wife, Princess Kate, made the decision to uninvite Markle from the coronation are completely false, according to senior palace officials.

Harry’s appearance also comes after months of tense wrangling between the palace and the Sussexes, as Harry had questions about where he would sit in the abbey — after having been relegated to the second row for his grandmother, Queen Elizabeth’s funeral in September — and what security he would be provided amid his ongoing legal fight with the British government over safety measures.

The family members he remains close to are his cousins Princess Eugenie and Princess Beatrice — the daughters of Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson, who is not invited.

They will be by his side as he watches his father’s onetime mistress, Queen Consort Camilla, be crowned queen, the title once promised to his beloved mother.

Markle, meanwhile, has come under intense scrutiny for her decision to stay home with the children, particularly as Archie could have celebrated his birthday at the couple’s UK home, Frogmore Cottage, where his sister, Princess Lilibet, enjoyed her 1st birthday party last June.

However, a palace insider told Page Six that Charles has been kept abreast of Archie and Lilibet’s lives, just as the Sussexes have previously said they used to video chat with and send photos to Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip.

“Both my grandparents do Zoom,” Harry said in 2021. “They’ve seen Archie running around.”

Insiders say there is definite thawing between Charles and Harry, with one source adding: “There is now, more than ever, a willingness to try and have a relationship.”

And while Markle has been accused over the years of stirring up drama, the source familiar with the Sussexes said that’s not the case: “Meghan doesn’t want any more rifts. She wants her children to know their grandfather, Charles, particularly when they are not going to know their other grandfather [Markle’s long-estranged father, Thomas Markle].

“She does hope they will meet and hopes her decision will be seen as an unselfish one, as it was best to keep the attention on His Majesty.”

The Sussex source added that Markle made the decision to skip the coronation in the hopes of not stirring up more drama.

“She just really doesn’t want a song and dance and everything being lived out in the public eye,” the source said.

Harry’s decision to attend the coronation was a lengthy process that spanned weeks, as Page Six revealed. In the end, Markle felt it would be “inauthentic” for her to attend given all the past drama.

In his book, Harry claimed that Charles did not even embrace him following the tragic death of Princess Diana in August 1997.

“Pa didn’t hug me. He wasn’t great at showing emotions under normal circumstances, how could he be expected to show them in such a crisis?” he wrote, also claiming that Charles made “sadistic” jibes about Prince Harry’s “real” father.

Harry grew up amid hurtful and public speculation that his true father was Princess Diana’s former lover Major James Hewitt.

However, Charles gave a shout-out to both his sons on Friday while addressing cadets at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst for the 200th Sovereign’s Parade.

Both William and Harry graduated from Sandhurst in 2006.

“I am under no illusions as to how hard you have all worked over the past 44 weeks, and I hope you feel justifiably proud of your achievements. Of course, I know you would not be here without the tremendous support of your family and friends who, I am delighted to see, can join us in such numbers today,” the King said.

“And, speaking as a father of two alumni of this Academy who remembers their passing out parades, I know they will be full of immense pride in witnessing you on parade.”

As for her own future, Markle has been keeping a low profile and concentrating on the children lately, although she is believed to be bringing back her “Archetypes” podcast for a second season.

And a source told Page Six that Harry’s attendance at the coronation is important to remind everyone that he is indeed, a royal — and to help keep the Sussexes’ brand bright and shiny.

Last month, meanwhile, a patent application to revive Markle’s Tig website was given preliminary approval by US authorities, meaning she will be able to reboot the blog as soon as June.

If the Duchess goes ahead with the plan, Tig 2.0 will feature articles, interviews, and photographs “in the fields of food, cooking, recipes, travel, fashion, style, lifestyle, the arts, culture, design, conscious living, and health and wellness,” according to the patent papers.

On May 16, Markle will attend the Women of Vision Awards in New York, where she will be presented with an award by Gloria Steinem honoring her as a “feminist, champion of human rights and gender equity, and global role model.”

It also describes her as “one of the most powerful and influential women in the world.”

And, apparently, now drama-free.

But one of Markle’s former friends said the duchess may have plenty of drama in her future: “She’s always had political aspirations.”