Queen approves wedding of 'Prince Henry and Rachel Markle'
The declaration means the Royal nuptials can go ahead in May - as without them, Harry would be disqualified from ever being king.
Friday 16 March 2018 05:38, UK
The marriage of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle has received formal consent from the Queen.
Her Majesty's declaration, given at a meeting of the Privy Council on Wednesday, refers to her "most dearly beloved grandson Prince Henry" and "Rachel Meghan Markle".
Henry is actually Harry's first name.
As she did for the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, the Queen will have signed an Instrument of Consent, issued under the Great Seal of the Realm.
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If Harry had failed to get the Queen's approval, he and his future descendants would have been disqualified from succeeding to the Crown.
But given what Harry has said on the matter in the past, it seems unlikely he would have minded.
Interviewed by Newsweek magazine last June, he said: "Is there any one of the Royal Family who wants to be king or queen? I don't think so, but we will carry out our duties at the right time."
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Harry was required to obtain the Queen's permission under the Succession to the Crown Act 2013, which actually came into effect in 2015.
Under the Act, the first six people in line to the throne require the Sovereign's approval to marry.
The other five are Prince Charles, Prince William, Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Andrew.
In the unlikely situation that the monarch withheld her blessing, it would be on the advice of the Prime Minister.
The Queen first met Meghan when Harry took her to Buckingham Palace for afternoon tea last October.
Their wedding is at St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle, on 19 May.