Palace Unveils Tired, Postpartum Woman (and Baby)

Harry and Meghan unveiled the latest addition to the family tree today, in a “tightly-controlled event” at Windsor Castle, as CBS News described it. Hope the British tabloids are happy!

“It’s magic, it’s pretty amazing, and I have the two best guys in the world, so I’m really happy,” said Meghan, positioning herself as a trooper in the tradition of her husband’s grandmother, given that she give a brief press conference two days after giving birth and still use words like “magic,” “amazing,” and “happy.” I recognize her very careful walk from personal experience, and all I had to do was stumble down the street for a pediatrician appointment, not put on a white dress and smile for the cameras.

The star of the hour was, of course, barely visible, swathed in a blanket and cap. He slept right through the whole circus, a trait that will serve him well in the years to come. “Parenting is amazing. It’s only been, what, two and a half days, three days, but we’re just so thrilled to have our own little bundle of joy, and to be able to spend some special time with him as he slowly starts to grow up,” Harry added.

In the end, the couple didn’t stray too far from the typical royal playbook, despite feverish speculation to the point that it seemed like they would reveal their child via Instagram photo of the newborn napping in an artful forest bower, somewhere on the premises of Frogmore, perhaps with some namesake amphibian guardians hopping around in the background.

No, it turns out they just wanted to wait a couple of days and skip exiting the hospital to a terrifying crowd, like this one, for Charlotte’s birth:

The New York Times reported that the scene was vastly more controlled:

The Sussexes ruffled feathers by opting out of a maternity-ward photo opportunity, customary for the last four decades, in which the royal parents emerge onto the hospital steps to face hundreds of waiting photographers.

As an alternative, they invited in a handful of British reporters — one reporter, one still photographer, and two camera crews — for a 10-minute audience with the new family.

They also included CBS News—which has already caused some carping among British outlets, and it’ll bear watching whether a salty storyline about their relationship with the American press emerges in the coming months.

But while choosing the hallways of Windsor likely indicates an understandable desire for less of a feeding-frenzy atmosphere, it does not exactly suggest these two are planning to divest entirely from the family business. Doesn’t get much more royal than this background!