London, Prince Harry and his wife Meghan Markle on Saturday are expected to hold the baptism ceremony of their son, Archie, in Windsor Castle, on the outskirts of London, in what is to be a private ceremony attended by family and close friends, although details were yet to be made public.
So little information has been let out by the Duke and Duchess of Sussex that not even the names of the godparents of the child – seventh in the line of succession to the British crown – have been revealed, reports Efe news.
The ceremony will be bereft of media presence in contrast to those held by the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, William and Kate, for their three children, as Harry and Meghan have decided to bring up Archie as a private citizen.
Efforts have been made to keep the baptism a low profile one for someone from the British royal family, and the ceremony will not witness the presence of Archie’s great grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II, who is scheduled to attend other commitments.
However, the Queen’s absence is not unprecedented, as last year she did not attend the baptism of her great grandson, Prince Louis.
Those that will attend include Prince Charles and his wife Camila; Prince William and Kate; Meghan’s mother, Doria Ragland; and a small group of close friends of Archie’s parents, reaching a total of some 25 people.
“The godparents, in keeping with their wishes, will remain private,” read a statement released by Buckingham Palace on Thursday regarding the baptism that will be officiated by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby.
However, it has been made known that the godparents are friends of the couple but not public figures.
After the ceremony, Harry and Meghan are expected to share some pictures of the baptism, taken by photographer Chris Allerton.
In recent weeks, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have been criticized for keeping the ceremony closed to the media, after it was reported that they spent 2.4 million pounds ($3.01 million) from public coffers to renovate Frogmore Cottage, their new residence in Windsor.
Royal biographer Penny Juror criticized the couple’s decision to keep the baptism away from the public glare especially after having spent millions of public funds to renovate their new home.
