Meghan branded ‘hypocrite’ over Lilibet’s 5th birthday | Royal | News

Princess Lilibet will celebrate her fifth birthday on Thursday, but unlike her early years, she is no longer completely hidden from the public eye.

Since relaunching her Instagram account at the beginning of the year, Meghan Markle has been increasingly sharing snaps of her family life in California, with Lilibet appearing in several posts. To mark the occasion, the Duchess today shared two never-before-seen photos of her daughter with the caption: “Our dream girl. Happy 5th birthday, Lili.”

While the Sussexes continue to largely shield their children’s faces, royal watchers have spotted a notable departure from the couple’s previous stance on privacy. For years, Harry and Meghan have meticulously shielded seven-year-old Archie and Lilibet from public attention, while also campaigning for better protections for children online. The Duchess has emerged as a leading advocate for online safety, making the couple’s decision to share additional family content even more controversial.

Royal expert Duncan Larcombe believes this change is unlikely to go unnoticed. “I’m sure his accusers will say he abused [the children]“He lectures about children’s privacy but then shares his own children as clickbait.

“They’re growing up a little bit, but this is going to make it more of a problem. It’s all been carefully planned. Everything seems to promote Meghan, everything is about Meghan. She’s in most of the photos. You wonder if Meghan had to make sacrifices because things weren’t going well for them.” While Duncan doesn’t believe Meghan’s online safety advocacy is explicitly suggesting that parents should avoid publishing photos of their children, he expressed concerns about what the decision might look like.

“He didn’t say you couldn’t publish images of your children, but as a campaigner you would think the last thing he would want to do is put his own children’s faces in the public eye,” she said.

The issue may also be particularly sensitive for Prince Harry, who has frequently discussed the difficulties of maturing under unrelenting public attention.

According to Duncan, the Duke may have conflicting feelings about the family’s new strategy. “There’s a good chance Harry will grit his teeth and allow this,” he said. “He knows what it’s like to be a child in front of the public and he doesn’t want that for his children.

“But I think we know who wears the pants in the relationship. From what we know and what he’s said in the past, this is going to make Harry pretty nervous.”

As Lilibet matures, Duncan believes its public visibility will almost certainly increase. “It certainly seems like it’s being brought out, albeit cautiously, as part of branding now,” he said.

He cited the example of William and Kate’s children, whom the public can now immediately recognize, but highlighted a crucial difference. “William would do this because he knew that someone like Prince George, the future heir to the throne, could not keep it secret.

“Meghan and Harry have the option of keeping their kids completely private. We’ll probably be seeing more of them. As we get older, it becomes impossible to keep that private.”

This raises questions about how Archie and Lilibet might ultimately feel about having their childhood documented online. “You wonder if they’re going to feel manipulated or uncomfortable by that,” Duncan said. “But they were born into a high-profile family. Sometimes, they will have to learn that they are public property to some extent.”

For now, Lilibet’s fifth birthday represents another important moment for the young royal, who lives thousands of kilometers away from the monarchy. However, the fact that the Sussexes are increasingly sharing glimpses of their family life on social media may also provide an indication of what’s to come.

“I think there’s a good hint of what’s going to happen in the future,” Duncan said. “Harry and Meghan will be accompanied by their children on visits and public appearances, but they have told the world they will not do so.”

Last month, Meghan posted a photo on Instagram showing Lilibet sitting at her feet in a wardrobe full of designer fashions, hours before heading to Geneva to attend a memorial service honoring children killed by online abuse. Through this, he also met grieving families affected by online harm.

The Duchess of Sussex described children’s online safety as a “public health issue” when she spoke at a World Health Organization event in May. “Our children are not products, they are not experiments, and they cannot be expendable,” he said, calling for better protection for young people navigating the digital world.

The night before, Meghan had shared a mirror selfie with Lilibet to her 4.5 million followers, with designer clothes in the background, with the caption: “Mum’s little helper.” Royal expert Tom Sykes slammed the decision. Speaking to The Royalist, he said: “The hypocrisy is breathtaking. It’s a boastful image. It’s an empty image. It’s a stunningly tone-deaf image.”

Meghan also shared a photo of her daughter holding a bunch of red balloons on her father Prince Harry’s lap on Valentine’s Day. “These two + Archie = my lovers forever,” she captioned the photo.

“I think they’ve had some pretty heated debates about it, because it’s definitely not the way Harry wants it to be,” royal expert and author Ingrid Seward said recently.

“They completely ignored the fact that they said they left the royal family because they wanted a more private life, and they created everything else for themselves. It seems they left the family because they wanted a public life and to make money.”

Responding to allegations of hypocrisy, Meghan’s spokesperson said: “The Duchess has always been clear that there is a distinction between sharing moments from her life and exposing her children to public scrutiny. By hiding their faces, she demonstrates the principle she stands for: providing children with privacy, agency and protection in an increasingly digital world.”

“Far from being contradictory, by hiding their faces it actually reflects the message he conveyed in Geneva: When choosing to share family experiences, parents can take conscious steps to protect their identity, privacy and digital footprint.”