Queen Elizabeth is unable to strip Meghan and Harry of Sussex titles

Buckingham Palace said in May 2018 that the Queen Elizabeth was “pleased” to bestow a new title on Prince Harry, which will be extended to Meghan Markle “on marriage.”

“Prince Harry so becomes His Royal Highness The Duke of Sussex, and Ms. Meghan Markle will become Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Sussex upon marriage,” the announcement stated.

However, when the Duke and Duchess of Sussex stepped down from Royal Family obligations in January 2020, they had to relinquish some titles that came with Firm responsibilities.

They no longer use the HRH titles, but they still go by the names Duke and Duchess of Sussex.

A constitutional expert told Express.co.uk that this could be due to the Queen’s inability to revoke such titles from Meghan and Harry once they have been granted, unlike the HRH title.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex titles “have a particular feature – they can’t be abolished until there’s an Act of Parliament,” according to Dr. Bob Morris.

Dr Morris, of the Constitution Unit at University College London, said the “HRH [title] can be given or taken away by the monarch of the day”, but once a Duke or Duchess title is conferred, “it would require an Act of Parliament to remove the title”.

However, just because the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have the title does not mean they have to use it.

Prince Harry and Meghan have come under fire for continuing to use the titles across the Atlantic to describe their lives away from the Royal Family in the United Kingdom.

Professor Cele Otnes, a royal specialist, told Express.co.uk that adopting the Sussex title outside of the Royal Family is a “meaningless” gesture that confuses the general public.

She said: “If you’re not involved in the Royal Family, and you can’t use the HRH, and the Queen has said to you, ‘Fine, if you don’t want to be involved, you’re not involved.’

“What does it mean?”

She added: “They call John Wayne ‘The Duke’ – that’s what they call John Wayne.

“They called Elvis ‘The King’.

“It’s a nickname you give yourself.”

Without the clarity of what the titles actually mean, behind merely possessing them, using them comes across as an “empty gesture”, she claimed.

Professor Otnes continued: “They get some superficial benefit from it. “But if you aren’t a Royal Highness, what does it mean?”

Dr Morris added that possessing the title and choosing to use it, were two separate issues, despite Prince Harry and Meghan being “at liberty to retain, and use, their titles”.

Dr Morris said of the Sussex branding: “Whether or not they use the title is another matter.”

However, he expressed skepticism that there is an overwhelming will to strip Meghan and Harry of their Duke and Duchess titles anytime soon.

He added: “At the moment, we have a situation where they’re living abroad.

“Harry may well have established or be in the process of establishing domicile there, which leaves him out absolutely from acting as Counsellor of State.

“They are at liberty to retain, and use, their titles, until such time as they were moved by an Act of Parliament.

“And I don’t see that happening.”