Prince Harry Shares Archie's Adorable Career Goals

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are currently wowing crowds and making headlines with their April 16 appearance at the Invictus Games in The Hague. Their trip is notable for a number of reasons. First, it marks the first time the Duchess of Sussex has left American soil since the couple stepped back from their royal duties back in 2020, per The U.S. Sun. Second, the couple quietly stopped over in England and paid an unexpected visit to Queen Elizabeth and to Harry's father, Prince Charles, before moving on to the Netherlands. There, they drew approval for their PDA (which would have been frowned upon if they were still working royals), Meghan's head-turning white ensemble, and for her kindness in offering her own coat to a Team Netherlands member to keep her new baby warm (as reported by royals reporter Omid Scobie on Twitter).

The Invictus Games — an international sporting competition for wounded and disabled military veterans — are particularly close to Harry's heart. A British military veteran himself, he founded the event after visiting a similar competition in the United States, per the foundation's website. This year's event is also special because it marks the Games' first year back post-pandemic. In his opening ceremony speech, the prince expressed the sentiment that was on all the athletes' minds.

"God, I've missed you all!" he exclaimed. "And people around the world have missed......this...The boundless humility, compassion, and friendship that is.....INVICTUS." 

Prince Harry went on in his Invictus Games speech to salute the "bravery" of the team from Ukraine for coming to represent their war-torn country. "You told me yesterday why you decided to join us, despite all odds," he said. "You know we stand with you. The world is united with you. And still you deserve more." Their courage and determination — and that of all the Invictus athletes — are the types of values Harry hopes to instill in his son, Archie Mountbatten-Windsor. The young royal, who will turn three in May, is seventh in line to the throne – far enough removed that he can safely carve his own career path. And that path may one day take him a few million miles from Buckingham Palace! Harry said, "When I talk to my son, Archie, about what he wants to be when he grows up, some days it's an astronaut." 

Archie's other potential ambitions include being a pilot — "a helicopter pilot, obviously," said his dad, who's an expert Apache pilot himself — or Kwazii, the pirate kitten from the Netflix series "The Octonauts." (Perhaps Archie might have a little trouble with that last choice). "But what I remind him is that no matter what you want to be when you grow up, it's your character that counts," Harry said, adding that "nothing would make his mum and me prouder" than to have their son emulate the character of the indomitable veteran athletes.