(NewsNation) — Prince Harry allegedly spoke with Princess Diana’s brother during a visit to Britain about potentially changing his family’s last name.

The Daily Mail reported that Harry, 40, spoke with his uncle, Charles Spencer, about ways to take Princess Diana’s surname, dropping the Mountbatten-Windsor surname used by his children, Princess Lilibet and Prince Archie.

His uncle, the 9th Earl Spencer, reportedly told the prince that the legal obstacles would be too challenging. An alleged friend of Harry told the Daily Mail, “They had a very amicable conversation and Spencer advised him against taking such a step.”

Prince Harry, Meghan’s children have Mountbatten-Windsor surname

Archie and Lilibet, Harry’s children with Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, have the last name Mountbatten-Windsor on their birth certificates. However, the family has been using Sussex as their last name.

Meghan had told People, “It’s our shared name as a family, and I guess I hadn’t recognized how meaningful that would be to me until we had children. I love that that is something that Archie, Lili, H and I all have together.”

When “With Love, Meghan” premiered on Netflix in March, Meghan corrected her friend Mindy Kaling for using her maiden name, Markle, instead of Sussex.

The Mountbatten surname came from Prince Philip’s side of the family. It was adopted by the Greek prince when he became a British citizen in 1947, joining the Royal Navy. The “Windsor” part of the surname was adopted by King George V in 1917. It was decided in 1960 that the Mountbatten-Windsor surname would be used for direct descendants when required.

Prince Harry, Prince William used Wales surname in school

Within the British royal family, children traditionally use their parents’ titles as surnames. For example, when Harry and Prince William were in school and in the military, they reportedly went by “Harry Wales” and “William Wales.”

After Harry and Meghan’s children were given the titles of prince and princess, their names were updated on the royal family website to “Prince Archie of Sussex” and “Princess Lilibet of Sussex.” Meghan and Harry were given the titles of Duchess and Duke of Sussex by the late Queen Elizabeth on their wedding day in May 2018.

People reported in 2024 that Harry and Meghan adopted the Sussex titles as their family’s last name.

King Charles reportedly cherishes Mountbatten surname

Mountbatten-Windsor is the official surname for the British royal family and is used by some descendants of Prince Philip and Queen Elizabeth. The Daily Mail reported that King Charles cherishes the surname, similarly to his father.

Harry and Charles have been on the outs for quite some time, and Charles reportedly refused to see Harry when he visited the United Kingdom in April. An insider told NewsNation’s Paula Froelich that it was Charles’ decision not to see his son.

”(King Charles) is very upset over Harry’s insistence on fighting the government for police protection. He feels Harry knew what he signed up for when he and Meghan left the monarchy, but Harry, being Harry, just can’t accept it,” the insider said.

At the beginning of May, Harry lost the appeal challenging the U.K. government’s decision to remove his publicly funded security after he stepped away from royal family duties and moved out of the country.

King Charles hospitalized after cancer treatments

Near the end of March, Charles was reportedly hospitalized for having “temporary” side effects from his cancer treatments. Harry didn’t see his father publicly during this time; the last reported sighting of the two together was February 2024.

The meeting was brief and followed Charles’ cancer diagnosis. Harry had reportedly learned about his father’s cancer from the press and flew into the U.K. for 24 hours.

The royal family is reportedly wary of Harry because they don’t want more private conversations to be discussed in the press or otherwise. One source told People in 2024 that Charles would no longer take his son’s calls or respond to his letters.