We Finally Know if William & Kate Will Send Christmas Gifts to Archie & Lili Amid the Feud With Their Parents

Given the ongoing rift between the Cambridges and the Sussexes, many are wondering if Prince William and Kate Middleton are giving Archie and Lilibet Christmas presents this year. The little ones are expected to celebrate the holiday in California with their parents Meghan Markle and Prince Harry, meaning their aunt and uncle in the U.K. would have to send any gifts across the pond in time for Christmas. So, is there a special delivery on its way to the Sussex kids?

When asked if Prince William and Duchess Kate are sending Archie and Lilibet Christmas presents this year, royal expert and Vanity Fair contributing editor Katie Nicholl told OK! Magazine that the Cambridges are indeed planning to send gifts to their niece and nephew regardless of any tensions with their parents. “Yes, of course [they will send presents]” Nicholl told the site. “They give gifts to the whole family and that includes all of their nieces and nephews.” While the royal correspondent did not reveal what Prince William and Duchess Kate plan to send them exactly, she did drop a hint as to what the couple’s present of choice for children is this year. “If it is something that happens to be a computer game or something like that then they are cautious of screen time,” Nicholl revealed, “so it could be a more practical gift.”

Practical gifts seem to be the name of the game for the royal family, as Archie’s gift in 2020 from the Queen was none other than..a kitchen appliance! Prince Harry revealed that the monarch surprised her great-grandson with a waffle-maker for Christmas, which mom Meghan has put to good use nearly every day when making breakfast for her son.

News of Prince William and Duchess Kate‘s Christmas gifts for Archie and Lilibet comes amid reports that the royal couple are set to visit the United States in 2022. Their visit will be part of the Duke of Cambridge’s Earthshot Prize ceremony, and will mark the first time that couple will be on the same soil as Prince Harry and Meghan since their royal exit in March 2020. The couples have not publicly reunited in over a year following Meghan and Harry’s move to America. While Harry has visited the U.K. a handful of times—once in April 2021 for Prince Philip’s funeral, and again in July 2021 for the unveiling of a statue as part of a Princess Diana tribute—Meghan has yet to make it back due to her pregnant and post-partum state after giving birth to her daughter Lilibet in June 2021.

Despite the Cambridges’ plan to visit the States, it’s “unlikely” that the U.K. couple will stay in Montecito with Meghan and Harry, according to one royal expert. “It’s like so many of these things — it’s a sort of lose-lose situation,” royal expert Jonathan Sacerdoti told Us Weekly on November 27, 2021. “If they get invited and they decline, it seems petty and nasty. And if they don’t get invited, it seems petty and nasty from the other side. And if they do accept such an invitation and something goes terribly wrong, that seems like a bad idea. I can’t quite see how this would work.”

Finding Freedom by Omid Scobie & Carolyn Durand

Image: Courtesy of Dey Street Books.

Buy: 'Finding Freedom: Harry and Meghan and the Making of a Modern Royal Family' $11.15

For more about Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, read Omid Scobie and Carolyn Durand’s New York Times bestseller, Finding Freedom: Harry and Meghan and the Making of a Modern Royal Family. The book tells all on the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s relationship—from their wedding and how they met, to the birth of their first son, Archie. Finding Freedom also dives into the “true story” of why Harry and Meghan left the royals at the end of 2019 and moved to the United States amid their drama with their family. Consisting of interviews and accounts with Harry and Meghan’s closest confidants, Finding Freedom is a must-read for any royal follower.

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