Will These Royals Replace Prince Harry, Meghan Markle?

Now that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s futures have officially been determined following their exit from roles as senior members of the royal family, many are wondering what the next steps are for not only the Duke and Duchess of Sussex but the royals as a whole. According to some experts, the need for other royals to fulfill some of the roles being vacated could see some of the youngest members of the family stepping up.

According to royalcentral’s Lydia Starbuck, among the most likely potential people to step up and fill in with more royal duties to fill the gaps being left by not only Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s exit, but Prince Andrew’s as well, are none other than Queen Elizabeth’s other son, Prince Edward, his wife, Sophie, Countess of Wessex, and even their children—Lady Louis Windsor and James, Viscount Severn.

Starbuck noted to Express UK that Lady Louise, in particular, has been noticeably stepping up her attendance at some royal engagements as she’s gotten older, which could be a clue that the current 16-year-old will have a bigger part to play going forward, even if she is 13th in line to the throne.

However, in the past, both Lady Louise and her brother have been sheltered from the royal lifestyle, a move their parents made to give them a more normal existence.

“Certainly when they were very young we tried to keep them out of it. Only because for their sake, to grow up as normally as possible we felt was quite important,” the Countess of Wessex previously said. “And they’re going to have to go out and get a job and earn a living later on in life and if they’ve had a normal a start in life they possibly can get, then hopefully that will stand them in good stead.”

Lady Louise isn’t the only royal who may see a more pronounced role with three higher-ranking members of the family stepping back in recent months.

With not only their cousin but their father, stepping back, some believe that Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie could also step up their place in the family as well, despite not being full-time royals due to their lower place in the line of succession.

The exact plans the royal family has to fill any vacancies left by Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s departures have not yet been addressed.