Comparing Kate And Meghan’s Unique Parenting Styles
Catherine, Princess of Wales and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex are both fascinating women who know a thing or two about parenting in the public eye. As mothers and public figures, they are constantly analyzed, compared, and contrasted, especially since the rift that so publicly divided their husbands. As we know, Kate and Meghan are two very different women with very different lifestyles, but they also share a surprising amount in common. Do their approaches to parenting show their stark differences? Or is there more that unites the two royal mothers than we thought?
Kate’s children are often seen in public
Part of being a royal is putting yourself out there for your adoring public. With such a prominent place in the royal family, it’s not surprising that Kate often takes Prince George — who is, after all, an heir to the throne — and his younger siblings with her for public engagements.
For example, all three kids attended the coronation of their grandfather King Charles III in May 2023. George even had a part in the ceremony, making him the youngest future King to ever have been granted this honor.
Meghan’s children have private lives
Meanwhile, the lives of Meghan and Prince Harry’s children are kept so quiet that many people might not even know for sure what Princess Lilibet, born after her parents stepped down as working royals, actually looks like. And Meghan seems happy to keep it that way.
The Sussex children didn’t attend Charles’ coronation. Their father, Harry, made an appearance for a little while before flying back to Los Angeles to spend time with Prince Archie, whose fourth birthday happened to be on the same day as the coronation.
Kate and William chose rich, but not famous, godparents
Traditionally, royals don’t just get a couple of godparents; they get a whole group of them! George has seven, Princess Charlotte has five, and Prince Louis has six. The thinking behind this seems to be that royals need a lot of guidance to get them to adulthood feeling prepared for their responsibilities, so the more adults in their orbit the better.
Yet you probably won’t have heard of most of the Cambridge godparents, apart from William, Prince of Wales’ cousin Zara Tindall. Most of them are non-royal friends of both William’s and Kate’s families.
The Sussexes chose at least one famous godparent
Harry and Meghan broke with tradition when it came to naming godparents to Archie, their child who was born before they stepped back as working royals. Unlike his cousins, the young prince only has three godparents, and all of them close friends.
Since Lilibet was born after the Sussexes cut ties, her parents perhaps didn’t feel the need to adhere to any royal protocol there. So, Lili’s godfather is American actor Tyler Perry, who befriended Harry and Meghan after they came to America. And there are rumors that she might have other famous godparents, too.
One of Kate’s children will probably sit on the throne
Kate and William’s first child, George, is directly in the line of succession. After Charles passes away, William should become King, and after that, it would be George’s turn. Assuming Kate is still alive at that point, she would become Queen Catherine, the Queen Mother.
Of course, the royals probably don’t want to think about this every day, since it involves musing on their own mortality. Luckily, there are people around them to ensure everything goes smoothly when the time comes.
Meghan’s children will almost certainly never see the throne
At the moment, Archie is sixth in line for the throne and Lilibet is seventh. All their cousins — George, Charlotte, and Louis — are ahead of them. And if any of those three have children themselves in the future, those children will also be ahead of Archie and Lili.
But based on Harry and Meghan’s desire to give their kids a normal life, it may be that they’re actually very relieved about that. Being the direct heir to the throne of the United Kingdom is a tremendous amount of pressure, after all.
Kate’s children are British
For context, the royal family aren’t actually as British as you may think! Actually, their ancestry is German. Queen Victoria wasn’t just part-German herself: she also married a German, Prince Albert, and had children with him.
But then two World Wars took place, and now the royals have pretty much shed their German ancestry. They changed their name during World War I from the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha to the House of Windsor. And Kate and William’s children are all British, with no joint ancestry.
Meghan’s children are British-American
Because Meghan is of course an American, the children she shares with Harry are joint citizens of Britain and America. This is a first for the royal family, although of course there may be more British-American royal children in the future; who’s to say?
Meghan and Harry’s children were also the first in modern British royal history to be biracial, and Meghan alleged in her famous 2021 Oprah Winfrey interview that some of the royals had “concerns” over this.
Kate’s children wear expensive clothes
Kate and William’s children are always dressed to the nines whenever they go out. They usually wear branded clothes from companies such as Amaia Kids and Pepa & Co, and avid royal-watchers then sometimes buy them for their own children.
Kate’s fashion choices are so admired worldwide that it actually has an effect on the British clothes industry, and the same goes for her children. It’s thought the royal kids contribute billions to the British economy just by getting dressed!
Meghan’s children wear affordable clothes
Of course, the trouble with dressing children in expensive clothes is that children are messy, and those clothes probably won’t stay in good condition for long. Perhaps Meghan decided, like so many parents, that dropping hundreds of dollars on a child’s shirt wasn’t worth it!
Instead Archie seems to mostly wear affordable clothes that can be purchased from regular high-street stores. He was wearing overalls from H&M ‘s eco-friendly “Conscious” range during the Sussexes’ trip to South Africa.
Kate has a highly trained nanny
No expense is spared when it comes to raising an heir to the throne. Kate and William have one of the most highly trained nannies in the business, a Spanish-born woman named Maria Borrallo.
Borrallo went to the prestigious Norland College, where she learned not only childcare but also evasive driving skills and martial arts. According to anonymous sources who’ve spoken to the media, she is excellent with the royal children and has even taught them some Spanish.
The Sussexes haven’t had much luck with nannies
In 2023 it was reported that Harry and Meghan had had to fire a night nanny after an “incident.” According to royal expert Omid Scobie, who co-wrote the book Finding Freedom, the person in question was “unprofessional and irresponsible." After that, they weren’t comfortable leaving Archie alone at night with anyone else.
They did hire a daytime nanny, though. This was Lorren Khumalo, whom Meghan has always sung the praises of. But Khumalo didn’t live with them: the Sussexes prefer to be as hands-on as possible with their kids.
Kate’s children had luxurious strollers
It’s tradition for royal babies to be transported in the finest strollers available. Kate purchased a Silver Cross one in 2013 when George was born, and she even helped with the development of the product! She requested an insect net be added, so now they’re on all Silver Cross strollers.
Kate’s stroller reportedly cost her about $2,000 — a tiny amount for a royal — and she got a lot of use out of it. After George had outgrown the stroller, it was passed down to Charlotte and then to youngest child Louis.
Meghan’s kids had more normal strollers
Meghan, meanwhile, seemingly valued practicality over luxury when it came to choosing strollers for her children and got hold of a Bugaboo Fox model. In 2019 a source told the Daily Mirror, “The Bugaboo was a gift to Harry and Meghan, even before they’d had Archie, from a close friend.”
The Bugaboo Fox retails for around $1,200 and advertises itself as being compact yet comfortable. According to the Daily Mirror’s source, Meghan used it to take Archie around the Windsor estate.
Kate had hyperemesis gravidarum during her pregnancies
It’s common knowledge now that the Princess of Wales had the previously little-known condition Hyperemesis gravidarum during all of her pregnancies. This is a very serious illness that involves severe morning sickness, and it can be downright dangerous.
If left untreated, the complaint can very easily lead to organ failure and death. Luckily, Kate had access to the best treatments available, so she was able to carry a child to term not once but three times.
Meghan, as far as we know, didn’t suffer from the same condition
You might be surprised to learn that up to 10 percent of women suffer from Hyperemesis gravidarum in pregnancy. But, luckily, Meghan wasn’t one of them. That’s not to say there weren’t problems, though.
Meghan has asserted in the past that stress from the press intrusion caused her lots of mental-health problems while she was pregnant with Archie. And in November 2020 she revealed that she had suffered a miscarriage earlier that year.
Kate and William’s kids have a very regimented Christmas
Royals take the Christmas celebrations very seriously, not least because their religion obviously plays a big part. The royal family always gathers at Sandringham House, a grand country estate, and celebrates there.
Gifts are opened on Christmas Eve, not Christmas Day, because the big day itself is for going to church. The family get dressed in their best clothes and walk from Sandringham to St. Mary Magdalene Church, greeting fans along the way.
The Sussexes can do whatever they choose at Christmas
Meghan, Harry, and their kids aren’t so bound by royal rules now, so they can do whatever they like on Christmas Day. Apparently, Meghan’s mother, Doria, usually joins her daughter and grandkids to celebrate the holiday.
In 2022 Harry and Meghan were reportedly invited to attend the royal Christmas celebrations, despite the rift between families that had sprung up by then, but they turned the offer down. That same month they released their bombshell-laden Netflix documentary.
Kate’s children had public Christenings
As soon as Kate and William’s children were born, the world wanted a window into every aspect of their lives. And a big part of this was seeing their parents take them to be Christened in a solemn church service where all royal traditions were observed.
All three children were Christened in a special robe known as the “Honiton Christening gown.” It is a replica of the garment Victoria’s daughter was Christened in. Make no mistake: royal Christenings are a very big deal.
Meghan’s children had private Christenings
Archie was also Christened in the special replica gown, but the ceremony was private. Unlike what happened with Kate and William’s children, there were no news cameras around to capture the parents going in and out of the church with their child. Harry and Meghan released some photos afterwards, but that was it.
As for Archie’s sister Lili, her Christening was even more private. Hers took place at the family home in California, and — despite reportedly receiving invites — Charles, William, and Kate were not there.
Kate and William's kids are close with all their grandparents
As far as we know, Kate and William’s children see both sets of grandparents on the regular. On the royal side they have Charles and Queen Camilla, of course, and on the non-royal side they have Kate’s parents Carol and Michael Middleton.
Obviously Princess Diana is missing from the group, but William makes sure she’s present in spirit. In the 2017 documentary Diana Our Mother: Her Life and Legacy, he said that he always made sure the children “know who she was and that she existed.”
The Sussex kids seem to be close to only one grandparent
The rift in the royal family, and the even-worse division between Meghan and her father, had the saddening result of cutting the Sussex kids off from three out of four grandparents. We can assume that Archie and Lili will have access to their parental grandfather Charles and their step-grandmother Camilla if they want it, but they also live in a totally different country.
Still, the Sussex family does have lots of support from Meghan’s mom. In 2018 one of Meghan’s friends told People, “Meghan draws a lot of strength from her mother. Doria is classy, chic, and confident, but not unapproachable. I definitely feel Meghan gets a lot of that from her mother.”
Kate cradled her baby bump while pregnant
One major point Meghan has raised since leaving the royals is that she and Kate did lots of the exact same things while “co-workers” in the royal family, but Kate was celebrated for them, while Meghan was criticized or mocked.
Perhaps the most egregious example of this is what happened during their pregnancies. Kate was often photographed gently cradling her baby bump and the press loved it. Yet Meghan had a quite different experience.
Meghan cradled her baby bump as well
While pregnant with Archie, Meghan cradled her baby bump a lot when in public — but the media seemed to hate it. One particular article from the Daily Mail saw “experts tackle the question” of whether Meghan’s bond with her unborn child was “pride, vanity, [or] acting.”
Harry brought this up in the 2022 docuseries Harry and Meghan and blamed racism. He said, “If you don’t see the difference and understand why it’s being reported that way, then I can't help you.”
Kate and William's children all have tried-and-tested royal names
Kate and William didn’t step even a little bit away from royal tradition when naming their three children. First came George, who is most likely going to be King someday. He’s almost certainly named after King George VI, Queen Elizabeth II’s father.
Charlotte’s full name is Charlotte Elizabeth Diana, after Charles, Elizabeth, and of course her late grandmother. And her younger brother Louis shares a name with both his father and older brother, as both of them have Louis as a middle name.
The Sussex children also have traditional names
Meghan and Harry named their first child Archie, a name no other British monarch has had. But it’s a traditional Scottish name that dates back to the Middle Ages, very befitting for a royal. And Lilibet, as you may know, is named after the nickname Elizabeth had as a child.
Both Lilibet — known as “Lili” — and her cousin Charlotte share the name Diana as a middle name, a tribute, of course, to the grandmother neither of them ever got to meet.
Kate tried hypnobirthing
In 2020 Kate talked on the podcast Happy Mum, Happy Baby about her experiences with hypnobirthing. She said, “I’m not going to say that William was standing there, sort of, chanting sweet nothings at me. He definitely wasn’t. I didn't even ask him about it, but it was just something I wanted to do for myself.”
She went on, “I saw the power of it really, the meditation, and the deep breathing, and things like that, that they teach you in hypnobirthing, when I was really sick, and actually I realized that this was something I could take control of, I suppose, during labor. It was hugely powerful.”
Meghan also reportedly learned to hypnobirth
Meghan didn’t tell the media much about Archie’s birth, but other people in the royal orbit did speak to magazines and newspapers. One anonymous source told Vanity Fair in 2019 that Meghan had been having “regular acupuncture sessions” as she got close to her due date.
And she also apparently had learned hypnobirthing techniques. The source said, “Meg wants a natural birth if she can have one. Her mother is very into anything that is holistic and natural, and having been brought up with yoga and mindfulness, it’s all very much part of Meghan’s birth plan.”
Kate’s spoken about her mom guilt
Kate went on the Happy Mum, Happy Baby podcast again in February 2022 and host Giovanna Fletcher asked her if she ever suffered “mom guilt.” Kate answered, “Yes, absolutely — and anyone who doesn’t as a mother is actually lying.”
The princess went on, “It's a constant challenge, you hear it time and time again from mums. Even mums who aren’t necessarily working, aren’t pulled in the directions of having to juggle work life and family life: there’s always something.”
Meghan has mom guilt too
Meghan opened up on her podcast Archetypes about the difficulties of being a mom. During a January 2023 episode she described the expectations of parenthood as “pretty trapping” and explained how she was trying to avoid the pressure.
She said, “You can be the mom who says she needs a break for just a minute, and then, if you’re like me, sits in bed scrolling through pictures of, you guessed it, your kids. You can be the mom who never misses a school pickup or drop-off and bakes the perfect cookies, or be the one who buys the cookies from the store, because that works too.”
Nature is an important part of parenting for Kate
Getting children out of the house can be tricky these days, since there are games consoles and televisions in most family homes. But Kate, like many parents, is determined that her kids should go out and play in the fresh air as much as is practically possible.
In 2019 the Princess of Wales joined a child-led campaign called Backyard Nature. She declared in a statement, “Spending time in nature can play a pivotal role in helping children grow up to become happy, healthy adults.” Her children’s school even has a chicken farm that Kate supports.
Meghan also wants her kids to enjoy the outside
Just after the famous “Megxit,” in 2020 an anonymous source told Us Weekly, “Meghan takes a walk with Archie every single day through the woods… She is telling friends that she is so happy to be out in nature and [in] their secluded area.”
And just like Kate’s children, the Sussex kids have access to a chicken farm. During an appearance on Ellen Meghan even showed the world a photograph of Archie feeding the chickens at their Los Angeles home.
Kate takes her kids to school herself
One of the things Kate does to ensure her kids have a relatively normal life is taking and picking them up from school herself, rather than getting a nanny to do it. Diana had done the same, and she changed royal parenting forever in the process.
Kate walked all three of her kids to their first day at Lambrook School in 2022. Of course, she knew cameras would be there, so she wore a stylish polka-dot dress and looked impeccable.
Meghan also does the school run
A 2022 Meghan interview with The Cut granted royal fans a sneak-peek into what life was like for the Sussexes and their children now. Part of the interview was done with Archie in the car, as Meghan was picking him up from school.
The interviewer noted that Meghan always made sure Archie had fresh fruit to eat while at school, and on the way back he was allowed to eat quesadillas in the back of the car.
Kate believes hugs are important
Once upon a time, royal children were simply not hugged in public. When Elizabeth returned to her children after going off on tours, she would give them a handshake, not a hug. But happily that’s all changed now.
Kate always hugs her children, and she’s often talked about the importance of doing so. She’s also thrown herself into campaigns that support good development in early childhood. You’ll never see her standing back and hand-shaking one of her kids.
Meghan also loves to hug
Meghan said she was a “hugger” in the 2022 Harry and Meghan Netflix show, and indeed there are countless pictures out there of her hugging children all over the world. She’s another one who didn’t let the former stuffiness of the royal family hold her back.
Harry wrote in his 2023 book Spare that William didn’t know what to make of Meghan and “recoiled” when she tried to hug him. “Willy didn’t hug many strangers. Whereas Meg hugged most strangers,” he said.
Kate believes mental health plays a role in parenting
Kate became a patron of the Maternal Mental Health Alliance, or MMHA, in May 2022. She recorded a video for the organization and passionately declared, “No mother is immune to anxiety and depression.”
She’s also spoken about her own experiences with these things. In 2017 she said at a child-health event, “Personally, becoming a mother has been such a rewarding and wonderful experience. However, at times it has also been a huge challenge.”
Meghan believes the same
Meghan went in depth about her mental health during her 2021 interview with Oprah. She said that during her pregnancy she outright “didn’t want to be alive any more,” because her stress levels had become so extreme.
Now Meghan is trying to help other people who are going through the same thing. One of the charities supported by her foundation Archewell is Mind, a British mental-health charity that publicly expressed support for Meghan when members of the media were slamming her for speaking up.
Kate and William are very serious about security for their children
Kate and William never compromise on security for their children, which is of course 100 percent understandable. In 2018 it was reported that there had been a “credible threat” against George; security at his school was increased as a result.
These days the family live at Adelaide Cottage on the Windsor estate: no-one is getting anywhere near there without authorization! It’s reportedly a highly secure area with multiple guards and security gates, just as you’d expect.
Meghan and Harry are just as serious
A big point of contention between Harry and his family is Harry’s security arrangements now that he’s no longer a working royal. In 2023 he told Good Morning America in an interview, “I was stunned that my family would allow security to be taken away, especially at the most vulnerable point for us.”
Luckily it seems that the Sussex children do have a security team now. During Meghan’s interview with The Cut she revealed that she has a security detail as she takes Archie to and from school.