Meghan calls Harry ‘simply the best’ as Sussex children switch schools over security concerns

Prince Harry’s 42nd birthday has been marked by a deeply personal tribute from Meghan Markle, who shared nine photographs of her husband enjoying family life with their children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet.

The Duchess of Sussex posted the images on Instagram on Tuesday, September 15, alongside the message: “He’s simply the best. Happy birthday, my love”, followed by a heart emoji.

The affectionate birthday montage comes at a significant moment for the Sussex family. Archie, seven, and Lilibet, five, have been moved to a different school in Britain only days after beginning classes following the family’s relocation from the United States.

The change was made after discussions with the family’s security team, which raised concerns about the practicalities of the children’s journey to and from their original school.

Meghan’s birthday tribute to Harry

Meghan’s collection of photographs offers a glimpse into the family’s private life, showing Harry spending time with Meghan, Archie, Lilibet and their Labrador, Pula.

In one picture, Harry kisses Lilibet while wearing a Santa Barbara Fire Department cap. Another shows him holding his daughter’s bicycle as the pair walk together.

The Duke of Sussex is also pictured skiing with Lilibet, playing archery with Archie and enjoying time outdoors with his family.

One of the more playful images shows Harry driving a quad bike along a track with Archie and Lilibet sitting behind him, either side of a Marks & Spencer bag, while Pula follows behind.

Another photograph captures Harry and Meghan embracing while their children play in the background. A black-and-white portrait of Harry looking thoughtful is also included.

The montage is set to an excerpt from Simply the Best, Noah Reid’s cover of the Tina Turner classic that featured in the television series Schitt’s Creek.

The post follows another video montage Meghan shared on Sunday, featuring family outings in Britain and set to Wham!’s Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go.

Together, the posts offer a notably upbeat picture of the family’s return to Britain, despite the security and logistical challenges that have emerged since their move.

Archie and Lilibet move schools after security discussions

The decision to change schools came shortly after Archie and Lilibet began classes in England.

The Sussexes relocated from the United States on August 26, and the children had only recently started at their first British school. They will now attend another school in the area after their family’s security team concluded that the journey to the original school presented practical difficulties.

A spokesman for Harry and Meghan said the decision followed discussions with the security team about the arrangements involved in getting the children to and from school.

The spokesman also stressed that the move should not be interpreted as criticism of the school or its staff.

The parents, the spokesman said, remained “extremely grateful” to the teachers and staff for the care and effort they had given the family.

Sources close to the Sussexes similarly described the change as a logistical decision.

Hello! magazine quoted a friend of the couple as saying the children had loved the school, its pupils and their parents, and that it had otherwise been an ideal fit for the family.

The friend said Harry and Meghan had wanted to make the arrangement work but ultimately had to make a difficult decision because the security team could not make the school journey operationally secure.

Archie and Lilibet have since visited their new school for a taster session.

Harry was reportedly seen settling Lilibet into reception, while the couple have also been added to parent WhatsApp groups.

A source close to the couple told People that getting the children settled remained their immediate priority.

“There is a lot to do,” the source said, describing the move halfway across the world as a particularly busy period for the family. They added that the couple were happy to be back in Britain and were concentrating on helping the children adjust.

The location of the family’s new home and the children’s new school has not been made public.

Harry’s police protection is being reviewed

The school change has come as the long-running dispute over Harry’s British security arrangements enters a new phase.

The Duke has spent years challenging the decision to remove his automatic entitlement to taxpayer-funded police protection after he and Meghan stepped back as senior working royals in 2020 and moved to California.

Now that Harry has returned to live in Britain with Meghan and their children, his security arrangements are being reviewed.

ITV News reported that the Executive Committee for the Protection of Royalty and Public Figures, known as Ravec, has informed Harry that a full review of his security will take place.

The review, known formally as a Risk Management Board, or RMB, will consider the circumstances surrounding Harry’s return to his home country and the fact that Archie and Lilibet are now attending a British school.

Meghan will also undergo her own RMB. It is the first such review of the potential risks facing her since the couple left the monarchy in 2020.

Harry, by contrast, had another RMB completed in July, only eight weeks earlier. However, the people assessing his security at that time did not know that he was planning to relocate his family to Britain.

The latest assessments will therefore consider the changed circumstances surrounding the family.

ITV News reported that interim measures have also been put in place to increase security at the Sussexes’ new home.

The couple’s current British police provision includes a police liaison officer’s telephone number. Harry has been told to use the number if he requires police assistance, although he has argued that this does not amount to meaningful protection because officers could take time to reach him in an emergency.

A dispute that has lasted for years

Harry has repeatedly argued that his position warrants state protection.

He is the son of the British monarch, fifth in line to the throne and a former British Army officer who served two tours in Afghanistan.

His decision to challenge the Home Office over his security has led to a series of legal battles. The courts have rejected his attempts to regain an automatic right to taxpayer-funded police protection.

After another defeat at the Royal Courts of Justice last year, Harry said in a BBC interview that he could not imagine a time when he would be able to safely bring his family to Britain.

His circumstances have since changed dramatically.

The Duke has now brought Meghan and their children to live in the UK, prompting Ravec to reassess the risks surrounding the family.

Scotland Yard does not comment on the specific security arrangements of members of the Royal Family. Protection is understood to be determined on a case-by-case basis and remains subject to review.

Harry has received police security at some recent events in Britain, including charity engagements.

He and Meghan also employ private security at their own expense. Their private protection officers can provide close protection but cannot carry guns in Britain, unlike the arrangements available to their private security personnel in the United States.

That distinction has been central to Harry’s argument that British police protection is necessary.

The Home Office has maintained that the UK’s protective security system is “rigorous and proportionate” and said it does not provide detailed information about individual security arrangements because doing so could compromise their effectiveness and affect people’s safety.

Security concerns behind the move

The security question has remained one of the most contentious issues between Harry and the British authorities since he and Meghan left royal life.

An earlier security assessment reported by ITV News this year concluded that the risks facing Harry were higher in Britain than in the United States. The report cited multiple threats and potential attacks, including a threat associated with al-Qaeda.

It also referred to concerns surrounding stalkers and other individuals considered potential threats to the Sussex family.

Harry’s private security team has argued that its personnel are not equipped to respond to an armed attack in Britain in the same way as armed police officers.

The report said the UK authorities were better placed to provide comprehensive protection, while noting that Harry remains the son of the King and a high-profile figure.

Harry has also faced criticism over passages in his 2023 memoir Spare in which he discussed the number of people he killed while serving against the Taliban. Some British military figures argued that the disclosure could increase the threats against him.

The security debate has therefore continued even as Harry’s personal circumstances have changed.

The new Ravec reviews do not automatically mean that Harry or Meghan will receive an increased level of state protection. Instead, the assessments will determine whether their current circumstances justify changes to their arrangements.

The Buckingham Palace letter that caused tension

The security review also follows an extraordinary dispute between the Sussex camp and Buckingham Palace.

Some people close to Harry had accused the Palace of trying to undermine the Ravec process by issuing a letter from the Lord Chamberlain last week.

The letter made clear Buckingham Palace’s position that Harry and Meghan are private citizens rather than working members of the Royal Family.

The couple were reportedly taken by surprise by the letter. Sources close to them indicated that they would prefer to be described as public figures.

There was speculation among those close to Harry that the timing of the letter might have been intended to influence Ravec’s consideration of his security arrangements.

The Daily Mail reported at the time that this interpretation was incorrect. According to that account, the Palace issued the letter to provide clarity ahead of a busy period for the Sussexes rather than to interfere with Harry’s dispute with the Home Office.

People close to King Charles were also said to believe that clarifying the couple’s status could make it easier for the King to meet his son privately.

The latest decision to conduct a full review of Harry’s security appears to have weakened the suggestion that the Palace letter was intended to prevent him from obtaining further protection.

Uganda reverses Invictus Games withdrawal

The security dispute has also spilled into the Sussexes’ relationship with the Invictus Games.

Last week, a source close to Harry and Meghan blamed the Lord Chamberlain’s letter for Uganda’s decision to withdraw from the Duke’s 2027 Invictus Games in Birmingham.

Uganda’s military chief, General Muhoozi Kainerugaba, said the country had pulled out because of “that Harry-Meghan nonsense” and declared that Uganda would not participate in anything that did not have the King’s approval.

The situation was subsequently defused.

King Charles’s private secretary, Sir Clive Alderton, spoke to General Kainerugaba, and Uganda later confirmed that it would participate in the Games after all.

The King was said to have been “moved” by the Ugandan military leader’s consideration of what His Majesty’s position might be on the event.

Harry and Meghan’s return to Britain

The family’s current life in Britain represents a significant change from the arrangement Harry and Meghan originally proposed when they stepped back from royal duties.

In January 2020, the couple announced that they intended to step back as senior members of the Royal Family, become financially independent and continue supporting Queen Elizabeth II while dividing their time between Britain and North America.

The plan was ultimately rejected.

At the Sandringham Summit, convened to resolve the Megxit crisis, the late Queen Elizabeth II ruled that Harry and Meghan could not maintain a position that was effectively half inside and half outside the monarchy.

The couple subsequently established their life in California, where they remained for six years.

Their decision to relocate their family to Britain has now brought the question of security back to the centre of their lives.

For Harry, the return also means renewed scrutiny of the protection arrangements he has fought to change for years.

For Meghan, it means her first formal Ravec risk assessment since the couple left the monarchy.

And for Archie and Lilibet, the immediate consequence has been a second school move shortly after beginning their education in Britain.

Against that backdrop, Meghan’s birthday tribute presents a much more intimate picture of the Sussexes’ current life: Harry skiing with Lilibet, playing archery with Archie, carrying his daughter’s bicycle and spending time outdoors with his family.

On his 42nd birthday, the message from Meghan was simple: “He’s simply the best. Happy birthday, my love.”