Royal baby Archie’s christening: everything we know

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s baby son will be christened next month in Windsor in a traditional royal ceremony.

The baptism plans emerged yesterday as the couple shared a sepia image of Archie that is the first public photo showing the six-week-old with his eyes open. The image, posted on their official Instagram account, was captioned: “Happy Father’s Day! And wishing a very special first Father’s Day to The Duke of Sussex.”

Here’s everything we know about Archie Harrison’s christening:

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

When and where is it?

The christening will take place in “early July”, reports Metro, although an exact date has yet to be given. Archie will be baptised at the same location where his parents were married last year - St George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle. Prince Harry was also christened there, four days before Christmas in 1984.

Who will christen Archie?

According to the Daily Mirror, the ceremony will be carried out by Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury, and the Dean of Windsor, David Conner.

Who will be godparents?

The Daily Mail says there are “no clues yet”, although that doesn’t stop the newspaper from speculating that potential candidates include “celebrity pals like Amal Clooney or Elton John”. However, the Mail adds, the godparents are more likely to be long-standing friends such as “the Prince’s former equerry Mark Dyer and the Duchess’s close friend Jessica Mulroney”, a Canadian fashion stylist.

Who will be there?

The Cambridges are expected to attend, although it is not known if they will bring their own children – George, Charlotte and Louis. The Mail recalls that back when Harry was christened, a “boisterous” Prince William, then two-and-a-half years old, “charged around, running between guests”.

The Daily Express reports that Meghan’s mother, Doria Ragland, will fly in for the ceremony, having recently returned home to California after living with the new parents following Archie’s birth to lend support.

The Queen, however, has “prior commitments and cannot attend”, the newspaper says. HRH also missed the 2018 christening of Prince Louis, Archie’s cousin, for the same reason.

What will Archie wear?

The Mail says he will wear a replica of “the Honiton lace gown Queen Victoria commissioned for the baptism of her first child”. The original, worn by 62 royal babies including Harry and William, was replaced after being deemed “too fragile for continued use”. The replica was also worn by Prince Louis last year.

How old will Prince Archie be?

The Prince will be a little over two months old when he is christened.