It’s a classic conundrum: What is a Montecito-based royal supposed to do when he just wants to play a chill game of snow polo in Aspen without drawing too much attention to himself? While you or I might opt for a Groucho Marx disguise or a really good wig, Prince Harry seems to have gone in a different direction. His ginger beard was still on full display, but he reportedly opted instead to use a slightly different name at the St. Regis Snow Polo Championship last week.
“Harry was introduced as Harry Wales, with no royal title mentioned ever or anywhere,” a source told “Page Six.” According to the source, Harry went with the name because he was just trying to have a low-key time with his friend. “He was there to play polo with his best friend Nacho” Figueras, the insider said, adding, “No titles, just fun.” Hopefully he really was in it just for fun, because Harry’s team lost to Figueras’s 8-5.
So why Harry Wales nine months after Meghan Markle famously told Mindy Kaling that their family surname is Sussex? Well, I can’t explain his decision-making, but it’s not the first time he’s used the name. Because they don’t have traditional last names, it’s commonplace for royalty to use their or their father’s territorial designation as a surname. When Harry was born, his father Charles was Prince of Wales, so he was named His Royal Highness Prince Henry of Wales. When he served in the British military, he used the name Harry Wales. Harry and Meghan became the Duke and Duchess of Sussex when they were married, which is why they and their kids usually go by Sussex.
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That’s all so complicated, though. If he’s interested, I have a better idea for how Harry can go incognito in future polo matches. Instead of Wales or Sussex or something that draws attention to his royal status, he should take the last name of his horse. For example, this time around he was riding a pony named Janet Chica, so he would’ve been announced as Harry Chica. Fun, no? If he’s going to put on a disguise, there could at least be some whimsy to it.
