The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are celebrating their seventh wedding anniversary on May 19
Starting with their first meeting in 2016, the post includes a selfie taken in London and snapshots from early vacations to Botswana and Norway. From 2017, there are images from their engagement photo shoot and moments from their 2018 royal wedding, including their dogs, their family crest and the lyrics to “Stand by Me,” which was performed at the ceremony.
Other milestones include a 2018 trip to Norfolk in the U.K., an ultrasound image of and baby bump photo during Meghan’s pregnancy with Archie, and Prince Harry cradling their newborn after his birth in 2019. The montage moves through their official royal visits to Australia and Morocco and into 2020, capturing life before and after their royal exit.
There are tender moments from their new life in California, including Meghan holding baby Lilibet in 2021, a sweet shot of Lilibet in her crib and Harry by her side. In 2022, the couple is seen painting with their kids and enjoying a quiet moment as Archie and Lilibet share a kiss beside the Christmas tree. The montage also shows travel snaps from 2023, a cozy hug during a snowy getaway in 2024 and a joyful family beach day.
Prince Harry, 40, and Meghan, 43, wed in a storybook ceremony at St. George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle on May 19, 2018. The royal wedding was attended by Harry’s grandmother Queen Elizabeth, his grandfather Prince Philip and many other British royal family members, drawing an estimated 1.9 billion global viewers.
Queen Elizabeth bestowed Prince Harry with the title of Duke of Sussex upon the wedding day, making Meghan the Duchess of Sussex (and the first in history) upon their marriage. Meghan was born in the U.S. and had retired from her career as an actress before marrying Harry, and took on a full-time working role alongside him.
Just a few weeks before their first wedding anniversary, the couple welcomed their first child, son Prince Archie, now 6, in London in May 2019.
Eight months later, in January 2020, Prince Harry and Meghan announced the seismic decision that they were stepping back from their royal roles in the U.K. in a move finalized the following year.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex relocated to her home state of California and eventually settled in the Santa Barbara enclave of Montecito, buying a home there in the summer of 2020. Their family expanded the following summer, when their daughter Princess Lilibet, now 3, was born in June 2021.
Speaking to PEOPLE in her most intimate interview in years, Meghan opened up about how the Sussex name bequeathed to her and Harry took on an even deeper meaning when they had children.
“It’s our shared name as a family, and I guess I hadn’t recognized how meaningful that would be to me until we had children,” Meghan said, alluding to how Archie and Lilibet use Sussex as their last name. It’s a tradition within the royal family for children to use their parents’ titles as the basis for their surname, and one her kids continue.
“I love that that is something that Archie, Lili, H and I all have together. It means a lot to me,” Meghan said.
Describing the Sussex name as “part of our love story,” she added, “I think as the kids get older, they’re so excited about, ‘Oh my gosh, Mama and Papa, how did you meet?’ I think that will come with time as they get older, but for right now a huge part of our love story is that we share the name Sussex.”
