Prince Harry was stripped of his royal title last week while competing in the star-studded St. Regis Snow Polo Championships in Aspen.
“Harry was introduced as Harry Wales, but his royal title was never mentioned before or anywhere,” a source exclusively told Page Six.
We hear that the Duke of Sussex wanted to keep a low profile and enjoy the sport with his close friend, professional polo player Nacho Figueres.
“He was there to play polo with his best friend Nacho,” the source explained, adding, “There were no titles, just to have fun.”
It is also said that Prince Harry did not want to attract media attention while participating in the pageant.
“But off the field, security guards kept photographers away from him,” the source said.
Other celebrities in attendance included Colman Domingo, Phoebe Dynevor, Goldie Hawn, Kurt Russell, Shaun White, and Martha Hunt.
A representative for Prince Harry did not immediately respond to Page Six’s request for comment.
It’s unclear why Prince Harry decided to use the nickname ‘Welsh’, given that he and his wife Meghan officially use the Sussex surname.
It’s worth noting that Prince Harry (real name His Royal Highness Prince Henry of Wales) went by the name Harry Wales while serving in the British military, following the long-standing royal custom for princes and princesses to use their father’s territorial designation as their surname.
Prince William also used the surname Welsh during his career, and after his father Charles III ascended the throne, he now calls himself Prince of Wales.
However, the late Queen Elizabeth gave Prince Harry and Markle the titles Duke and Duchess of Sussex after they married in 2018.
Two years later, he and Markle stepped down from their royal duties and subsequently dropped the Royal Highness style from their titles.
However, they still refer to themselves as “Prince Harry, the Duke of Sussex and Duchess Meghan” on their official website.
The “With Love, Meghan” host admitted on the Netflix show that she uses the last name Sussex instead of Markle.
“You know I’m Sussex now,” she told guest Mindy Kaling at the time, explaining why it “makes sense” to share the last name with her and Prince Harry’s two children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet.
“When you have kids, you say, ‘No, I’m going to share my name with them,'” she continued. “It means a lot to say, ‘This is the name of our family, this is the name of our little family.'”
The couple have been adamant about using their titles for themselves and their children, despite stepping back from royal duties and moving to the United States in 2020.
In a 2023 interview with 60 Minutes, Anderson Cooper asked Prince Harry why he didn’t give up his royal title, to which he replied, “What difference does it make?”
Meanwhile, sources claimed in June that Prince Harry was considering taking his late mother Princess Diana’s maiden name, Spencer, amid ongoing rifts with members of the royal family.
