Buckingham Palace publicly refers to Archie and Lilibet as prince and princess for the first time, 6 months after they inherited the royal titles

• Buckingham Palace has updated its website to reflect new titles for two of the youngest royals. 
• As of Thursday, Archie and Lilibet Mountbatten-Windsor are known as a "prince" and "princess."
• It comes six months after they technically inherited the titles when King Charles became monarch.

Buckingham Palace referred to Archie and Lilibet Mountbatten-Windsor as prince and princess for the first time, six months after they technically inherited the titles. 

On Thursday, the line of succession on the royal website was updated to reflect the official titles of the young royals. Archie, 3, and Lilibet, 1, have gone from being referred to as "Master" and "Miss" to "Prince" and "Princess," respectively, and are now listed as Prince Archie of Sussex and Princess Lilibet of Sussex.

The children of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are sixth and seventh in line to the throne, behind their father. Also in front are their cousins, Prince Louis, Princess Charlotte, and Prince George, who have all been referred to by their current titles since birth due to their father, Prince William, being heir to the throne. 

Buckingham Palace's updated reference comes after Harry and Meghan referenced Lilibet's title in a statement regarding her recent christening. 

In a statement to Insider on Wednesday, a spokesperson for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex said they could "confirm that Princess Lilibet Diana was christened on Friday, March 3 by the Archbishop of Los Angeles, the Rev John Taylor."

Although it took six months for Archie and Lilibet's titles to be reflected on the website, the pair technically inherited the titles of prince and princess when King Charles, their grandfather, became monarch in September 2022. 

This is due to a law set out by King George V in 1917, known as the Letters Patent, which dictates that all royals who are either the children or the grandchildren of the sovereign through a male line can hold the titles of prince and princess.

According to Tatler, the decree reads: "The children of any Sovereign of the United Kingdom and the children of the sons of any such Sovereign and the eldest living son of the eldest son of the Prince of Wales shall have and at all times hold and enjoy the style, title or attribute of Royal Highness with their titular dignity of prince or princess prefixed to their respective Christian names or with their other titles of honour."

Buckingham Palace's public recognition of Archie and Lilibet's titles also comes after Meghan previously said in her March 2021 interview with Oprah Winfrey that there was talk about denying Archie a princely title, suggesting this was due to race. The comments came prior to the birth of Lilibet, who was born in June 2021. 

At one point in the interview, Markle told Winfrey that while she was pregnant "they" — possibly the members of the royal household — "were saying they didn't want him to be a prince… which would be different from protocol."

A statement released by Buckingham Palace on behalf of the late Queen Elizabeth II after the interview said "the whole family is saddened to learn the full extent of how challenging the last few years have been for Harry and Meghan."

It added: "The issues raised, particularly that of race, are concerning. While some recollections may vary, they are taken very seriously and will be addressed by the family privately."

Representatives for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex and Buckingham Palace did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.