Meghan Markle and Prince Harry just welcomed a bouncing baby boy into the royal family on Monday, May 6. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex announced the news like most parents do in the digital age—on Instagram.
“We are pleased to announce that Their Royal Highnesses The Duke and Duchess of Sussex welcomed their firstborn child in the early morning on May 6th, 2019,” the caption read on the recently-launched @SussexRoyal account. “Their Royal Highnesses’ son weighs 7lbs. 3oz. The Duchess and baby are both healthy and well, and the couple thank members of the public for their shared excitement and support during this very special time in their lives.”
A smiling Prince Harry also appeared on camera on May 6, sharing the happy news with reporters at Windsor Castle. And just two days later, on Wednesday, May 8, the couple revealed the first adorable photos of their newborn son, as well as his name: Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor. Oddly enough, Markle and Prince Harry didn’t bestow Archie with an aristocratic title, despite him being seventh in line to the throne.
“I’m very excited to announce that Meghan and myself had a baby boy early this morning, a very healthy boy,” Prince Harry said on Monday. “Mother and baby are doing incredibly well.
“But Markle and Prince Harry aren’t the only ones “over the moon” about their new bundle of joy. The Duchess of Sussex’s mom, Doria Ragland, is “overjoyed by the arrival of her first grandchild,” according to a statement posted on Twitter by the Royal Family.
Ragland shares a close bond with her daughter, and we’re sure she’ll develop the same tight-knit relationship with baby Archie. While Ragland basks in her new role as grandmother, here’s everything you need to know about the 62-year-old “free spirit,” who possibly helped Oprah perfect her downward dog.
Doria Ragland is a Black woman and daughter of a nurse and antiques dealer.
Markle’s mother was born as Doria Loyce Ragland on September 2, 1956, in Cleveland, Ohio. Her mother Jeanette Arnold was a nurse who died in 2000, and her father Alvin Ragland sold goods at flea markets. He passed away in 2011, as reported by the Daily Mail. When she was a baby, her parents moved from Cleveland to Los Angeles. Jeanette and Alvin divorced around 1983, and Ragland has two half-siblings on her mother’s side, Joseph Jr. and Saundra Johnson, as well as a younger half-brother on her dad’s side, Joffrey Ragland.