Meghan Markle, Prince Harry expecting first child

Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, is expecting her first child with Prince Harry, according to an announcement by Kensington Palace this morning. The palace said the baby is expected in the spring of 2019.

The news was announced as the couple began a tour of Australia, their first official tour since their marriage. Their baby will be seventh in line to the throne.

Why is a royal baby so special?

UNICEF estimates that 353,000 babies are born each day around the world. What makes a royal baby so special?

Prince George was born on July 22, 2013. The next evening, he was presented to “the biggest media circus in royal history.” Hundreds of TV crews and reporters lined up for almost a month outside the hospital where his mother gave birth.

When Princess Charlotte was carried out of the hospital, the receiving blanket in which she was wrapped sold out within minutes. Its brand monitored 100,000 people from 183 countries visiting their website in less than twenty-four hours. When Prince George greeted President Obama at Kensington Palace in 2016, the clothes he was wearing sold out in minutes as well.

It has been this way for many years. When Princess Elizabeth (later Queen Elizabeth II) appeared on the cover of Time magazine in the early 1930s, her clothing was copied in stores across America. In the 1890s, when the Duke of Windsor wore a straw hat, his appearance revived the Nottingham straw industry.

Why are we fascinated by celebrities?

There is no question that our age is fascinated by celebrities. Dozens of magazines and innumerable websites are devoted to them. Their exploits and experiences often lead the evening news ahead of events of far greater consequence to our lives.

Psychologists have various explanations for this fascination.

One is Terror Management Theory, which states that our anxiety over death drives us to seek a sense of self-esteem, worth, and sustainability. Thus, we focus on people whose lives seem successful, vicariously…