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On two occasions recently, the Duchess of Sussex has mentioned that her children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet, refer to two of her acquaintances as ‘Aunt’ and ‘Uncle’. That careless familiarity has been widely perceived as a snub of the children’s actual uncle and aunt, the Prince and Princess of Wales.
“The disregard shown to the children’s blood family is astonishing,” a royal insider tells New Idea.
“Prince William and Princess Catherine especially would love to be in their nephew and niece’s lives because family is everything to them – but it’s now very apparent that Meghan’s makeup artist Daniel Martin and tennis champ Serena Williams have usurped them.
“William especially will no doubt be infuriated by the snub.”
Meghan revealed Archie, five, and Lilibet, three, are close to ‘Uncle Daniel’ in the first episode of her Netflix series With Love, Meghan. She also disclosed Serena’s elevated status in an Instagram story, posted on March 3.
In that post, Serena was at Meghan and Harry’s Montecito mansion, where she played a game of Candy Land with Lili.
“When the aunties come to celebrate … and to play!” Meghan captioned the snap.
Our source says, “It’s just so sad that Meghan and Harry’s children don’t have any relationship with their real aunt and uncle. In fact, that applies to their whole extended family on Harry’s side.”
While King Charles has met Archie a handful of times, he’s only met Lili once, during a brief break, in the middle the late Queen Elizabeth’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations in June 2022. At the time, Lili was barely a year old.
“While Harry and Meghan have claimed to share video calls and messages featuring the kids with Charles, it’s not the same as interacting in person,” our source adds.
“Catherine too, especially feels saddened that, despite everything that’s happened, she and William don’t know Harry’s children.”
Due to Harry and William’s current estrangement, Archie and Lili have had very little, if anything, to do with ‘Uncle Will’ or ‘Aunt Catherine’ – and it’s not thought they’ve ever met their cousins Prince George, 11, Princess Charlotte, nine, or Prince Louis, six.
We’re told William and Kate’s children are “exceptionally close” to their second cousins, Mike and Zara Tindall’s three children, Mia, 11, Lena, six, and Lucas, three.
“This is a painful reminder for Harry that his kids don’t share a similar closeness with their cousins. They don’t even know them,” says our source.
Instead, it seems Meghan is determined to fill the gap with substitute relatives.
“Meghan is clearly close to Daniel and Serena – and there may well be other friends she has introduced to the children as aunts and uncles,” our source says.
“Archie and Lili are too young to ask questions now,” our source says.
“But it can only be a matter of time before they wonder why they don’t see Uncle Will or Aunt Catherine – or any other royal relatives.”
