Meghan Markle and Prince Harry’s son Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor will be baptised on Saturday, July 6 in a ceremony attended by Royal Family members and friends. It was previously revealed the Queen would not be attending the happy day due to an unknown “prior engagement”. But now a royal source has revealed the real reason why the Queen will not be at her eighth great-grandson’s baptism – because Harry and Meghan forgot to check her diary in advance. Royal sources have revealed the Duke and Duchess of Sussex originally planned the christening for today but this was flagged as a no-no due to the busy schedules of Prince Charles and the Queen.

The date was moved back by one day allowing Charles to attend after returning from his week in Wales marking his 50th anniversary as the Prince of Wales.

But the Queen was still unable to attend as she had already agreed to spend the weekend with her husband Prince Philip in Sandringham after staying in Scotland for Holyrood Week.

Holyrood Week is one of the most important dates in the Queen’s annual diary when she must stay in her official Holyrood House resident in Edinburgh while attending official engagements.

The week is “non-negotiable” in terms of its flexibility, the Mail reports, so the Queen usually spends the weekend afterward at Sandringham in Norfolk to recuperate.

A royal source told the publication Harry and Meghan should have been “more accommodating” than they were about the date for Archie’s christening.

They said: “There is huge support for the couple in not wanting to conform to tradition.

“They are young, they are striking out on a different path from other members of the Royal Family and there is enormous goodwill for them.

“But they shouldn’t do that without regard for tradition.

“Her Majesty was already scheduled to be in Scotland for her annual Holyrood Week and had a prior engagement at the weekend.

“There is a feeling amongst some that they should have been more accommodating about the date.”

Will we get to see the guests arriving or departing?

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have chosen to keep the identity of Archie’s godparents secret in line with their wishes for him to be raised as a “private citizen”.

Archie will be baptised in a closed ceremony excluding the media from seeing guests arriving and leaving the service.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have faced criticism for their decision to keep the names of the godparents quiet when Archie is seventh-in-line to the throne.

Photographs from the christening will be released afterward but they will be pre-approved pictures taken by photographer Chris Allerton.

Public relations consultant Mark Borkowski said the move was a PR strategy worth of “Hollywood A-listers”.

He added it cemented Harry and Meghan’s “declaration” as parents “that they’ll go to any lengths to protect their privacy”.

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